Christmas with Calleigh
by daynaa
Summary: Eric, Calleigh and a Christmas ski vacation. Misconceptions and interruptions can lead to funny things... NOW COMPLETE!
1. Chapter 1

Christmas with Calleigh

Disclaimer: Don't own CSI:Miami, I can only wish I did.

A/N: Something Christmassy just because it's Christmas, and I felt like writing it!

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"Please?" Eric put on his cutest face and tried to get Calleigh to look him in the eye. He was in the midst of trying to convince Calleigh to join him on a small three day vacation he was taking. He was supposed to go with his sister, but then she got the flu, and he really didn't want to go alone. Besides, Christmas with Calleigh would be very fun… Christmas with Calleigh might even give him enough courage to tell her how he felt for real about her.

"I don't know Eric." She sighed. She knew that he wasn't going to give up until she agreed to go, but she insisted on putting up a fight.

"Please, please, please!" He pleaded, grabbing her hand. She giggled. He could act so immature at times, yet he still looked so sexy.

"Eric," She whined.

"What?" He smiled, letting go of her hand. "What exciting Christmas plans did you have anyways?" He had a point there, she didn't have anything planned. It would be another lonely Christmas at home, wishing she was somewhere else. She had the chance to go somewhere else right now, the chance to have a fun Christmas with one of her best friends, and although it pained her to admit it, the man she loved.

"Fine, I'll come. Wait! Where are we going?" She realized he'd only said 'Come on vacation with me, two nights and three days.' He hadn't told her where.

"I was surprised that wasn't the first thing you asked." He smiled at her, "We're flying up to Ontario."

"Ontario?" Her eyes grew wide. She'd never been to Canada in the winter before, but she'd heard about it from a cousin who lived somewhere out in eastern Canada. It was cold, and snowy.

"Yeah, don't I remember you saying you always wanted a white Christmas?" He smirked.

"Well, yes…" She started, only to be cut off by Eric.

"Great! So I will pick you up tomorrow morning very, very early." He told her.

"How early?" She asked, hoping it wasn't anything outrageous.

"The plane leaves at seven, so we should be at the airport around six… how about five thirty?"

"In the morning?" She groaned.

"Yes, be ready Cal." He smiled, before giving her a quick hug and bounding out of the lab. She gathered her things and headed out of the lab herself. She had to go to the store to pick up some things then rush home and start packing. She didn't have anything that would keep her warm enough judging by what she'd heard about Ontario.

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Eric was already packed up and ready to go. He had been for a week now. He loved Christmas, he loved vacations, and even more, he loved Calleigh. This was going to be perfect. He rummaged through his suitcase one last time before deciding he was indeed ready for this trip and let himself fall back onto his bed. It wasn't long before dreams of this Christmas vacation with Calleigh overtook his tired body.

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It was eight thirty by the time Calleigh was done getting everything she needed for this trip. She had to get mittens, and a hat, and a coat, things that were useless in Miami, but necessary where they were going. She dragged all her purchases into her bedroom before opening her closet and starting to pack. She wasn't the most experienced packer, but she managed alright. By the time she was ready to go to bed, she was looking at getting a maximum of five hours sleep. 'That's what the plane ride is for.' She told herself, but another voice in her head told her, 'Yeah, like you will be able to sleep sitting that close to Eric'. The second voice scared her because that was the side of her that admitted to loving and wanting Eric, but she would have to keep her feelings in check this week because he obviously just considered them friends. Calleigh eventually drifted off to sleep with thoughts of their vacation in her mind.

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The next morning at five o'clock, Eric was slowly waking up in the shower. He had slept a half hour longer than he had intended to, and now he had to rush if they wanted to make it to the airport on time. He had the quickest shower he'd ever had before jumping out and grabbing some clean clothes from his closet. Pulling on the snug fitting, faded jeans and a form fitting white t-shirt he grabbed his suitcase and headed out the door. Thanks to the minimal amount of traffic at this time of the morning, and the fact that he drove a bit over the speed limit, he got to Calleigh's house right on time.

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Calleigh was awake and in the shower by four thirty. She, unlike Eric, got up at the time she intended to and had plenty time to get ready. Her suitcases were already at the door, and she was really excited for the trip. Getting out of the shower, she put on a housecoat and headed into the kitchen for some coffee. By five o'clock she just had to dress, and wait for Eric to pick her up. She started looking through her closet telling herself she was acting childlike, caring so much about her appearance when she and Eric were only friends, but she couldn't help herself. After much contemplation, she glanced at the clock and realized Eric would be there any minute. She quickly dressed in the outfit she was currently holding, which turned out to be a pair of khaki pants and a dark blue v-neck sweater. Sure enough, moments later she heard a knock at the door. She quickly answered it to find Eric smiling widely. "Let the vacation begin."

A/N: Okay, random Christmas story. Ha, I have like what, six stories on the go now and I'm really, really slow at updating some of them… but I'll eventually finish them up, what did you think? Should I continue with this one?


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

Eric ignored Calleigh's protests and grabbed her bags. She followed him out to the car and got in the passenger side as he put her bags in the trunk. His smile grew bigger as he climbed in the driver's side of the car to see Calleigh bouncing with excitement in her seat. "I see you're really excited, Cal!" He smiled.

"Yeah." She blushed, an embarrassed smile creeping onto her face. "Aren't you?"

"Sure am." He smiled back at her, glad she was just as excited as he was. This was going to be a trip they'd never forget; he'd make sure of it.

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"I don't like flying on planes very much, you know." Calleigh told Eric through a nervous smile once they were situated on the flight. Eric took this opportunity to take hold of her hand.

"Don't worry Cal, it'll be fine. Before you know it, we'll be hitting the slopes in Ontario." Eric smiled, trying to make her feel more at ease. His smile did work wonders on her, but even it could not fully relieve her anxiety of airplanes.

"I'll try not to worry." She took deep breaths in and out as the flight attendant started explaining the safety procedures for the flight.

"Good." Eric squeezed her hand reassuringly and almost made her completely forget about her anxiety. "Just try and sleep that might make it easier." He suggested. Calleigh nodded, already sleepy from having to wake up so early when she could hardly sleep the night before due to her excitement. Within half an hour of take off both Calleigh and Eric had drifted to sleep. Neither thought it would be possible being in such close proximity to the other, but your level of tiredness can be so easily underestimated.

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Two hours later, Eric awoke to the sound of the pilot announcing they were to be landing in Ontario shortly. He glanced over at Calleigh who was still sleeping and smiled. She looked even more beautiful sleeping than he could have ever imagined. "Cal." He whispered in her ear. She stirred a bit, but didn't wake up. "Cal," He repeated a bit louder this time. She opened one eye, and remembered where she was. On a plane, to Ontario with Eric. "Hey." He smiled, once her other eye opened.

"Hey, are we almost there?" She wondered out loud.

"Yeah, should land in a few minutes." He informed what he'd heard the pilot saying just seconds beforehand. She made what she thought was a disgusted face, but what Eric thought was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

"I hate landing." She pouted. He couldn't help but let a laugh escape his lips. She was unbelievably cute when she was pouting. "Why is that funny?" She tried not to smile when she heard him laugh, but whenever she heard him laugh, all she wanted to do was smile.

"You're just cute when you pout, that's all." He told her. Her cheeks flushed the slightest tinge of pink and she giggled slightly. Then the pilot announced they were starting their final decent into Ontario, and Calleigh's giggle and smile vanished. "Relax." Eric told her, prying her fingers off the seat handles which she was gripping for her life. He took both of her hands in his and held them there until they were on the ground. Calleigh had been so caught up in the touch of their hands she barley noticed the landing. "See? It wasn't that bad." Eric smiled, unbuckling his seatbelt and standing. Calleigh registered what was really going on around her after realizing Eric had let go of her hands, and quickly undid her seatbelt and stood in the aisle. They got their carryon luggage down from the overhead compartments and headed off the plane.

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An hour later, Eric, Calleigh and all of their luggage were situated in a rental car and were off to find their final destination for the day, the ski lodge. "It's so beautiful up here." Calleigh sighed as she looked out the window, taking in the snow covered scenery of hills and mountains that lined the sides of the country roads.

"We're almost there." Eric announced with an excited smile. He loved coming up to Ontario for these vacations. It was usually a great time, because he love spending time with his sisters because he didn't get a lot of time to catch up on what was going on with them, and he liked to know, protective brother type of thing… but this year, he was with Calleigh which would most likely make it the best trip ever… or the worst, but he didn't want to think about that.

"Oh Eric, I'm so excited!" Calleigh squealed. Eric chuckled, she really was excited.

"Have you ever skied before?" He asked her.

"Nope." She laughed, "But you can teach me, can't you?"

"Most certainly." He nodded. "Here we are." He announced as he turned into the lodge.

"Aw! It's so cute!" Calleigh commented with a smile. She couldn't wait to learn how to ski, and she just couldn't wait for this vacation to really begin in general. All this time with Eric alone… something good would have to come of it, wouldn't it?

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A/N: Yeah, I'm really really behind on my Christmas stories… but I WILL finish it haha. Sorry it's taking me so unbelievably long, I've been having a lot of trouble writing lately… I hope it isn't showing too much!


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

"Hello, welcome to Talisman Ski Resort, I'm Mindy, can I help you?" A woman who was in her late twenties asked Eric and Calleigh as they approached the front desk.

"Hi, my name's Eric Delko," Eric started before the young brunette cut him off with a flirtatious giggle. Calleigh rolled her eyes at the way the girl was shamelessly trying to flirt with Eric, and felt a twang of jealousy in the pit of her stomach, which she quickly ignored. The girl had every right to flirt with Eric, and although he hadn't yet, Eric had every right to flirt with this girl, Mindy.

"Here's the key to your room, Mr. Delko." She flashed a perfect row of white teeth at Eric as she managed to flirtatiously hand over the room key. "I hope you have a wonderful stay." That made Eric's smile turn into a chuckle and Calleigh wonder why she had only given Eric one room key, since Eric had told her that both rooms were registered under his name.

"Thanks." Eric nodded, turning to face Calleigh.

"Eric, I thought you had both rooms booked under your name?" Calleigh clarified, making Eric turn around and headed back to talk to Mindy again, much to her delight.

"Is there a problem Mr. Delko?" Mindy giggled. Calleigh tried not to scowl from where she was standing mere feet away, and did her best to ignore the jealousy that was growing in the pit of her stomach, but at the same time was trying not to laugh at how oblivious Eric was to the flirting.

"I was supposed to have two rooms booked under my name, is there a second?" Eric asked.

"There was, but it was cancelled." Mindy's grin faded a bit when she came to the realization that Calleigh and Eric would be sharing a room.

"Oh, well is there another room I could book?" Eric wondered. Mindy's face lit up again as she realized that Calleigh and Eric didn't want to share a room, but she realized that, much to her dismay, they were fully booked, seeing as it was the most popular ski weekend of the year.

"Sorry, we're all booked." Mindy said sincerely. Calleigh walked up behind Eric.

"It's fine Eric; let's just go to our room." She smiled, accenting her southern accent and putting her arm though his, leading him away from Mindy who was giving her a death glare. Calleigh smiled sweetly at her before picking up her bag and following Eric up the stairs.

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"Wow, the rooms amazing!" Calleigh observed, carrying her suitcase in past Eric's which was dropped in the doorway and setting it on the bed.

"Yeah, I've been to a few resorts around here with my sisters, and we like this one the best." Eric nodded, picking his suitcase back up and setting on the opposite side of the bed than Calleigh's.

"When can we go skiing?" Calleigh's eyes lit up with excitement.

"Soon." Eric laughed, "But aren't you hungry?"

"I guess," Calleigh shrugged, "But let's eat quickly! I want you to teach me how to ski!"

"And I will, right after lunch. I'm starving!" Eric exclaimed, still smiling over Calleigh's excitement and how it made her look unbelievably cute.

"Yeah, me too." Calleigh sighed, moving some things around in her suitcase. She was glad that she wasn't the type of girl to think ski trip and automatically pack every pair of sweatpants and loose t-shirt she had. She still had some nice outfits, and of course, her favourite dress, in case there was a dinner occasion on the trip, and she was sure glad she had because she figured Mindy wouldn't be the only girl that was flirting with Eric this trip, it happened everywhere they went, but he didn't seem to notice, and she tried not to mind.

"Ready to go?" Eric asked.

"Just give me two minutes, we did just get in from a flight you know." Calleigh smiled and headed towards the bathroom.

"But Calleigh, you look fine." Eric told her, he really thought she looked more than fine, but he wasn't about to tell her that now.

"Aw, thanks Eric, but give me two minutes okay?" She called from the bathroom.

"Sure." He shrugged sitting down on the bed and flipping on the TV.

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A/N: Ha this took me FOREVER to write and it isn't even that long or good, but ohwell, it's something. What do you think? Suggestions? Should I continue at all? Okay, well let me know. Haha, Talisman is my FAVE ski resort man!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

A/N: So I was thinking… this story has been awfully fluffy and happy so far… but I wouldn't want to put anyone out of the Christmas mood with too much angst stuff, but a little can't hurt. Haha, just bear through it;)!

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Around two minutes later, just as she promised, Calleigh opened the bathroom door with a new shirt on, and her makeup redone. Eric turned off the TV as soon as he heard the door open, and jumped off the bed, eager to get to lunch. "Alright, let's eat." Calleigh giggled at seeing how quickly Eric had the door open, he must have been hungry.

"Sorry, I'm absolutely starving!" Eric sighed, "You look great though." He smiled, deciding to be honest in the politest way he could.

"Always the gentleman." Calleigh laughed, starting down the hall with Eric hot on her heels.

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After finally finding the dining hall, they sat down to a delicious lunch. "That was amazing." Eric sighed contently, patting his full stomach.

"It was, now let's go skiing!" Calleigh suggested, her eyes shimmering with excitement, which made her look even more beautiful than she already was, although he hadn't thought it possible.

"Alright, let's go skiing." Eric agreed, "But if we go out in these clothes, we'll be cold. Let's go put something warmer on."

"Sure, I don't care; I just can't wait to try skiing!" Calleigh nearly squealed with excitement.

"If we don't get skiing soon, I think you're going to explode, and we can't have that, so let's get going!" Eric laughed getting up and letting Calleigh naturally slip her arm through his as they headed down the hall.

"Do you think I'll be able to go down the really big hills tomorrow if I ski all day today?" Calleigh was practically skipping down the hallways with excitement; Eric swore the only thing holding her back from doing so was their interlaced arms.

"I don't know Cal; it depends on how fast you learn." Eric tried not to laugh at her giddish excitement, but couldn't resist a large smile.

"Okay, okay, let's just get changed and get right to it!" She speed walked the last few steps to the door and slipped the key card in and out, throwing the door open and entering the room. She grabbed her suitcase and headed into the bathroom leaving Eric to change in the rest of the room. They both quickly pulled on comfortable, loose fitting clothing in a hurry, Calleigh due to excitement, and Eric knowing that Calleigh would be changing fast because of her excitement and not wanting to end up in an awkward situation. "Are you decent? I need to come out and get my snow clothes on." Calleigh called from the bathroom.

"Yeah, I'm good." Eric answered. He was decent, just not fully dressed. He had on his sweatpants, just not a shirt yet, he hadn't been in quite as much of a hurry as he though, and was glad when he saw the look on Calleigh's face when she opened the door to see Eric standing there, half naked.

"Uh, snow clothes." She reminded herself after a moment of blushed ogling. Just then, they heard the familiar click of a card key and Calleigh spun around to see Mindy, the brunette from the receptionist desk entering their room.

"Oh, I'm sorry." She smiled, her eyes not wavering off Eric's well toned, muscular chest. "I didn't think anyone was in here… I was asked to bring some towels up, the last shift left a note saying that there wasn't a fresh load done… never mind, I'm just going to go." She threw a satisfied smirk at Calleigh before taking one much longer than necessary glance at Eric and leaving the room calmly. Calleigh couldn't believe this girl, she felt like she was in high school again, competing with another girl for the school jock. And she knew it was a stupid thought, because really, if Eric wanted to, he could spend the rest of the trip with the girl, even though that wouldn't be the most polite thing to do considering he had invited her here, but he could really, they weren't in a relationship, and they were only just friends… but she couldn't help thinking the jealousy growling in her stomach was telling her otherwise.

"Well, that was awkward." Eric shrugged, after a moment of awkward silence. He had tried to ignore and obliviate himself to the flirting that Mindy was trying to start in the lobby, but this was too much. How was he ever going to get Calleigh to fall in love with him on this vacation if this girl wouldn't leave them alone? "Ready to go?" Eric quickly pulled on his t-shirt and sweater before grabbing his snow pants and pulling them on as well.

"Almost…" Calleigh was struggling to get her snow pants on, something she obviously hadn't done before, and if so, not for many, many years.

"Need some help with that?" Eric laughed as Calleigh nearly fell over whilst hopping around trying to pull the snow pants over her regular pants.

"Uh… yeah." Calleigh nodded, blushing at the fact she couldn't put a pair of snow pants on. Eric walked over and she put her arms on his shoulders while she got her legs into the snow pants. There could not have been a more tension filled, awkward moment that either of the pair remembered. 'If only Mindy could have walked in on us now.' Calleigh thought smugly to herself, although she didn't know why she had. Eric was simply helping her with her snow pants because she couldn't get them on. 'You should be embarrassed, not enjoying it.' She scolded herself, but she couldn't help it. Just then, getting lost in her thoughts, Eric doing the same, Calleigh lost her balance and fell, taking Eric down onto the bed with her. They lay there for a moment, staring into each others eyes, before both registering the situation they were in, and thinking to themselves that no matter how much they wanted it, the other didn't, so they'd have to get up.

"Sorry." They both smiled at the same time, getting up and starting to pull on their coats.

"Ready to ski?" Eric asked with a smile.

"Definitely." Calleigh nodded, although not with the same enthusiasm as she would have been experiencing ten minutes beforehand.

"Let's get these lessons started." Eric laughed, heading out the door with Calleigh close behind him.

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A/N: haha, so much for the nonfluff, well it was a little less fluffy… I think… but I do have this idea, haha, so I'm going to ask: Would you guys prefer if I kept this fluffy like it presently is? Or would more action, well not really action, drama is a more appropriate word, be better in future chapters? Let me know, and I will do as I am asked haha! Or, if no one says anything… I'll just choose haha. Okay, ttyl!


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER FIVE:

A/N: Thanks to everyone who reviewed and gave me their opinions for the fluff/drama wondering! I really appreciate it! Here goes:

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"It is so cold!" Calleigh shivered as they were greeted with the harsh, winter wind and lightly falling snowflakes as they walked out the door.

"But it's beautiful, especially once you get to the top of the mountain." Eric sighed, remembering the view.

"Uh, top of the mountain?" Calleigh looked terrified, "I don't think I can do top of the mountain."

"Relax," Eric laughed, putting his hands on her shoulders, "We won't do anything you're not ready for."

"Okay." Calleigh breathed a sigh of relief, "Now where do we get some skis?"

"Right this way," Eric grabbed her hand and started off running down the hill, dragging Calleigh close behind.

"Ah! Next time tell me before you run, okay?" She laughed.

"No problem." Eric smiled, turning around to look at her. Just as he did, she lost her footing on a patch of ice and Eric took a step toward her to help her catch her footing, but she ended up slipping and taking them both down. "Are you okay?" Eric exclaimed as soon as he was done cringing in pain.

"You should be the one that's hurt, I landed on you. You're the one that hit the ice." Calleigh pointed out.

"But I'm the one that's worried about you." Eric smiled. He was fine, well he would be fine once his back stopped hurting from where he'd landed on it, but with Calleigh lying directly on top of him, his mind was focused on other things than pain.

"Okay, well here," She got up quickly, making him grunt as she used his stomach for leverage to help herself up before offering her hand, which he took and pulled himself up.

"Thanks."

"It was my fault you were on the ground in the first place," She shrugged, "Now let's get our skis!" She rushed into the ski shop, Eric right behind her.

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A while later, Calleigh and Eric were set with ski boots on their feet and skis in hand. They walked rigidly out side, cringing once again at the cold Canadian winter air, and set their skis to lean against a ski rack. "I don't think I'm ever going to get used to these boots." Calleigh complained.

"If you're complaining already, I don't know if I want to be your teacher." Eric joked, "It only gets more painful."

"Aww!" Calleigh whined again, making Eric chuckle.

"I can handle it, you should be able to, I mean, you wear high heels these can't be much worse." Eric pointed out.

"I can move my ankles in high heels Eric, and I can feel my toes." Calleigh answered, the whining tone not leaving her voice.

"As cute as you are when you whine, let's get skiing!" Eric was a bit shocked at his own honesty, but just mentally shrugged it off and set his skis on the ground, stepping into them. Calleigh chose to ignore the comment Eric made about her being cute, because she didn't want to get herself excited over something he probably didn't even mean, so instead, she busied herself with trying to mimic what Eric was doing with his skis, failing lousily.

"How are you doing what you're doing?" Calleigh asked after a moment.

"It's easy," Eric told her, "You take your boot, and put the toe in the front of the binding."

"I have no idea how to do that." Calleigh admitted after considering what he'd told her.

"It's alright, I'll show you." Eric removed his skis and took a few steps to the spot Calleigh was standing. Bending down he placed his hands around her boot and she moved her leg where he guided it. Toe into the binding and heel down hard. "See it wasn't that hard." Eric told her with a smile, "Think you can do the other one yourself?"

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded, "Thanks!" Eric just smiled and got his skis back on. Calleigh struggled a bit, but eventually got her other ski on too. "Don't we need poles or something?"

"We can get some later if we want, but when you learn, it's easier not to have them." Eric shrugged.

"Okay, you're the teacher." Calleigh smiled, "So teach me, because I just tried moving, and I nearly fell over." Eric laughed and thought about the best method to go about teaching Calleigh how to ski. This was going to be one interesting day.

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A/N: Aw I love skiing so much and I really, really want to go RIGHT NOW, but it is two in the morning, and I can't ski this weekend because I fell and my knee is so swollen I can barley walk. Stupid ice, stupid boots. Haha, okay, well review and tell me how that's going, I'm still in fluff mode here, but I've got some trick up my sleeve, haha I really felt like saying that. K, I'm out.


	6. Chapter 6

CHAPTER 6

A/N: Got Christmas?

Okay, ugh I STILL haven't got back out skiing yet, haha but we have a snow day today, score! But I'm too injured to ski, but it's my fault I'm a klutz…. And I do gymnastics on cement… haha. K story time:

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It had been half an hour and Eric had successfully managed to get Calleigh to the smallest hill. It had taken quite a while before she learned how to walk with the skis on, well not walk, but glide rather. "I have no idea how to get on that thing." Calleigh pointed just ahead to where the lift for the bunny hill was. Instead of a regular chair, handle or T bar lift, it was a moving lift that you stood on.

"Okay, go right up to it so the tips of your skis are almost on it," Eric instructed and Calleigh followed.

"Now what?" Calleigh wondered if she was ever going to make it to the top of this tiny hill.

"Now you move your skis up a bit farther…" Eric told her. She did, and with a whoosh, she was going slowly up the hill. She let out a squeal before Eric quickly got his skis on the lift and followed her up.

"This is fun!" Calleigh exclaimed with a giggle.

"Wait till you get on the bigger lifts." Eric laughed at her excitement over the bunny hill. "Excited to go down the hill?"

"Very!" Calleigh nodded, "Shit! How do I get off?"

"Don't worry." Eric told her, "With this lift, you just push your skis forward like you did on the ground when you get to the top and you'll go right off the lift and onto the snow, alright?"

"If you say so." Calleigh shrugged, she was in no position to argue with Eric, her teacher at the moment.

"Okay, ready?" Eric asked as they got to the top.

"I have to be." Calleigh pointed out before pushing her skis forward, nearly losing her balance, but not quite, and successfully making it off the lift.

"Good job!" Eric commended her after he was off the lift as well. "Now for the actual skiing part." He thought of how the best way to teach Calleigh turns was. He thought back to how he had learned when he first started skiing and decided to use that technique. "Alright, now, the most important thing to remember when you're skiing is to turn. If you don't turn, you'll end up 'straight-lining' it, which means you go down the hill in straight line, extremely fast, and you'll most likely lose your balance at some point and fall."

"No straight-lining, got it." Calleigh nodded, storing that fact in her memory.

"And to turn, there are a few ways, but the easiest way is to angle your ski tips so they make a triangle sort of shape," He did it wish his skis to show her, and she mimicked him successfully. "Okay, now when you're going down the hill, you'll want to keep your skis in this position which I like to call, the snow plough." Calleigh giggled at Eric's teacher-like manner but continued listening since he did seem to know what he was talking about. "Now when you're going down the hill, pivot your hips the direction you want to go, and shift your weight that direction too."

"Uh, okay." Calleigh knew what she had to do, but she wasn't so sure if she could do it.

"The first time, I'll help you, alright?" Eric suggested, mostly because he wanted to help Calleigh, but a little tiny part of it was because they'd have to get closer for him to do so.

"Okay." Calleigh agreed gratefully. Eric took off his skis and put his hands on Calleigh's hips, making her jump the slightest bit because she hadn't been expecting him to do that, but soon relaxing under his grip.

"Now go, slowly." He smiled, not wanting to trip and make her fall if she shot down the hill. "Start just like we did before when you were coming over to the lift." With that, she pushed her one leg forward and she was off, very slowly, keeping her feet in the 'snow plough' position. He instructed her to turn left, so she turned her hips to the left, with a bit of guidance from Eric, and leaned that way too, and voila, she turned to the left. Eric let go, telling her to try going to the right, which she did successfully. "Great job!" He called after her as she made two more turns. He walked quickly back up the hill to get his skis and went down himself, giving her a high five as he came to a stop. "That was great Cal! You caught on quick!" He smiled.

"Well, I had a great teacher! That was really fun! Let's do it again!" Her smile full of enthusiasm and excitement.

"Sure." Eric nodded and they headed over in the direction of the lift.

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Two hours and many runs down the bunny hill later, they were ready to take a break. "I'm hungry again." Calleigh exclaimed, blowing a piece of hair which had fallen out of her ponytail, out of her face.

"Me too, all that skiing makes me really hungry." Eric smiled.

"It does." Calleigh nodded, "We should go get something to eat, and then rest for a while, then we can come back out and I can try a bigger hill."

"Sounds like a great plan." Eric nodded as they headed off in the direction of the ski shop.

"Thanks for teaching me to ski Eric, you were a great teacher." Calleigh told him as they took their skis and boots off.

"No problem" Eric smiled, "You were a great student." They placed their skis and boots in the appropriate places to be returned and headed back towards their room.

"You know what? Supper is in an hour and a half," She told him, "So why don't we just grab a snack at the vending machines, and relax, then we can be extremely hungry for dinner."

"No objections." Eric shrugged. Truthfully, he didn't care what they did as long as they were together on this vacation, and besides, the one main point of the trip was to admit to Calleigh how he felt, and hope that she'd feel the same way, which would be easier to do in their hotel room than in the dining area. 'Not if Mindy keeps interrupting you with lame excuses," He thought to himself, shaking his head. Couldn't she have come up with something better than towels?

"Alright, let's go." They headed out of the ski shop and Calleigh immediately noticed how weird it was walking without ski boots now. "Do you ever get used to the feeling of taking ski boots on and off?"  
"Not really." Eric smiled, making her scowl. "Calleigh, I never knew you whined so much." He joked.

"Only when I learn new things." She defended herself.

"Right." He smirked, she knew he was just teasing her.

"If you don't stop teasing me, you won't get any snacks." She threatened, trying to stay as serious as she could.

"How are you going to manage to keep me away from the snack machines?" He challenged.

"I have my ways." She winked. She knew that it would be next to impossible for her to prevent Eric from getting food, especially when he was hungry like now, but she was having fun teasing him back.

"Fine." He pretended to pout as they entered the front doors to the lodge. She took one look behind her at his face, which she had to admit, was cuter than ever in a pout, and burst out laughing, and it wasn't long before he did the same.

"Hurry up Eric," She told him as the warm air hit their faces.

"Nice to feel warm again." Eric commented as they looked around to see if they could locate any snack machines.

"Over there!" Calleigh spotted one, and they both made a dash for it.

"Ooo! Skittles!" Eric exclaimed when they reached it.

"Give me your money." Calleigh laughed, and Eric obeyed. "Ha, thanks. I didn't think you actually would." Calleigh smirked as he handed over a few bills.

"I want candy." Eric smiled, glad he was making Calleigh laugh.

"Me too." She nodded before they started arguing over which kinds of candy to get.

--------

A/N: Okay random chapter ending, I know hahaha but ohwell, I needed to end it and im in a suckie writing mood right now. But it's a SNOWDAY! SCORE! Haha, reviews are muchly appreciated, thanks to everyone who's been reviewing! MUCHLOVE!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

A/N: K, so I haven't updated for like a bagillion years, but I've been sick, and writers block has also been plaguing me, haha, but today, I'm inside because we have an intense ice storm outside and our semi formal got cancelled and now I'm sad, but I'm going to write, maybe it'll make me less sad. Haha

"I'm starving." Eric exclaimed.

"You just ate two packs of skittles and two chocolate bars." Calleigh pointed out in disbelief. "All I ate was a half pack of skittles and a chocolate bar and I'm probably less hungry than you are."

"But look how much tinier you are than me." Eric whined.

"Fine, you're allowed to be hungry." Calleigh shook her head in mock defeat, "But seriously, supper is in like forty-five minutes, you can pig out then, alright?"

"Yes!" Eric cheered, making Calleigh laugh. He was being extra goofy this weekend, and she didn't know it, but he was doing it purposely to make her laugh, and it was working.

"What do you want to do for these last forty five minutes?" Calleigh asked.

"I don't know, we're still in our skiing clothes… we'll have to change and get ready for dinner…"

"Eric, it doesn't take me forty five minutes to get ready for a simple dinner." Calleigh told him.

"Then you're different than every other girl I've ever taken to a simple dinner." Eric smirked.

"Uh, thanks, I guess." Calleigh smiled.

"Yeah." Eric nodded, trying not to laugh at the irony of the situation. Of all the girls he'd ever dated or well in this case liked, Calleigh was by far the most beautiful, yet at the same time she put the least effort into her appearance, she didn't stand in front of a mirror for hours doing her make up and hair, she didn't spend half the morning picking out her clothes, she was simply Calleigh.

"So how've you been lately?" Calleigh asked, trying to start a random conversation to fill the silence that had overtaken the room.

"I've been alright, how have you been?" Eric answered.

"Oh, pretty good." Calleigh smiled, "I have no idea what to talk about."

"Me neither." Eric sighed. Well, he could think of a few things, but he wasn't ready to go down that road yet. "What do you want to do later on tonight, like after dinner?"

"Well, we could go skiing again…" Calleigh suggested, she was eager to improve her skiing skills so she could hit some bigger hills the next day sometime. "I mean, I should practice all I can so that you don't have to stay on the little hills with me all day tomorrow."

"I don't mind at all." Eric told her honestly. "If we don't feel like skiing again after we eat, I think there is a dance club type of thing around here somewhere."

"Oo! I love dancing!" Calleigh exclaimed excitedly.

"Well we could hit the dancing scene tonight then." Eric smiled. At second thought, Calleigh wondered if she would rather ski than dance because although she was a good dancer and thoroughly enjoyed that activity, and she wasn't quite as good as skiing and it was more grueling, while skiing, Eric paid attention to only her, instructing her and helping her learn but dancing, there would be lots of other girls there, girls that Eric would bet interested in more than her, and she knew she wouldn't like that, but she'd decided and thought after, so she'd have to live with that. "Half an hour till dinner, and I'm assuming you have to start getting ready now, because I do." Eric laughed.

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded with a faint smile and a faraway look in her eyes that told Eric something was up, but he wasn't going to press the issue until after dinner, and possibly after dancing. He couldn't wait to go dancing, he just hoped that Calleigh would dance with him and not some other guy.

A/N: haha, yeah, so anyways, I am the proud new owner of CSI:MIAMI season three on DVD, yessss! Hah, and I took a bagillion years to update, and I apologize, but I've set myself up for some easy chapters coming up haha with the little setups I've set up for myself, dancing, skiing etc. anyways, review PLEASE! And reviews thus far are MUCHLY appreciated!

PS: Sorry it's so supershort!


	8. Chapter 8

CHAPTER 8

As they walked into the restaurant, Eric instinctively put his hand on the small of Calleigh's back to make it clear that she was with him even though, technically, she wasn't. Calleigh was more than pleased with this gesture as it made her heart flutter when she felt Eric's gentle yet protective hand on her back. She couldn't stop smiling as they were shown to a table in the center of the room. Before they had a chance to start a conversation, they were approached by a waiter who asked them if they would care for anything to drink. After ordering, Calleigh decided to start some pleasant conversation. "It really is beautiful here." She sighed, turning in her chair to look behind her where the majority of the lifts and mountains were.

"It is." Eric agreed, looking partly at the mountains, and partly at the woman sitting across the table from him. She turned back around in her seat as the waiter arrived at their table with their drinks.

"Have you decided yet?" He asked.

"No, we need a few more minutes." Calleigh smiled sweetly.

"That's fine." The waiter smiled back, not taking his eyes off Calleigh for a second.

"Thanks." Eric more or less growled at the man, who quickly walked off. Calleigh tried not to giggle at Eric's over protective manner, since she really wasn't his to protect, but it was charmingly cute. It was then that the couple at the next table over decided they would introduce themselves.

"Hello dears, my name is Lena Robinson, and this is my husband Eli. Is this your first time here?" A lady in her mid forties asked.

"Hi, I'm Calleigh, this is Eric. It's my first time here, but not his." Calleigh smiled in a friendly manner at the couple next to them.

"Newlyweds?" Lena guessed. "How I miss those days." She winked at her husband who rolled his eyes.

"Um, no, we're just friends." Calleigh smiled with what Lena sensed to be regret in her eyes.

"Oh, I see." The older woman smiled knowingly. "Eli and I were friends for years before he finally came around and asked me out."

"Interesting." Eric joined in the conversation. He knew how that felt. "Do you come here often?"

"About once or twice a year, every winter, sometimes in the summer too." Eli answered. "She said you'd been here before?"

"Yeah, I usually come every winter with one of my sisters, but this year Calleigh joined me instead." Eric explained.

"That's nice." Lena smiled warmly. When the comment was said by most people, it was a polite way of saying they weren't interested, but when Lena said it, you could tell she genuinely meant it.

"Mom! Paul's putting salt in my drink!" A young girls voice called from a few tables away.

"Our children." Lena smiled with a hint of embarrassment. "Paul, be nice to your sisters."

"They like to sit at their own table at dinner time, it makes them feel grown up." Eli explained, "And we definitely do not mind the quiet time. Kids go crazy on vacation."

"I know what you mean." Eric chuckled, "I remember vacations with my sisters when I was little and boy, and we were fighting like cats and dogs at the end of every trip. Siblings in cars and secluded vacation spots make for very interesting arguments." Calleigh just smiled uncomfortably at the prospect of family talk, something which didn't go unnoticed by Eric. "What are their names?"

"Well, Teah's the oldest, followed by Paul. We wanted three children, but instead, we wound up with Haleigh and Lucy Jane, and we couldn't have been happier."

"Well I definitely know how Paul feels- I was the youngest of three sisters, it could be torture at times, but I love them." Eric provided some insight.

"What about you dear, what were your siblings like?" Lena asked Calleigh.

"I had all brothers," Calleigh answered, "I was always just one of the guys at home."

"Well you certainly don't look like one of the guys." Lena remarked, eyebrows raised making Calleigh uncertain of what to say, and Eric smirk.

"Mom! Paul is driving me nuts!" One of Lena and Eli's girls screeched, making several heads in the restaurant turn towards the table of kids.

"Haleigh, Lucy Jane, why don't you two come over here for a bit?" Lena suggested. Moments later, two petite brunettes appeared beside the table and climbed up on chairs. "This is Calleigh and Eric." Lena introduced.

"I'm Haleigh, this is my sister Lucy Jane." The obviously more outgoing of the twins spoke up.

"Hi." Lucy Jane looked first at Eric, then at Calleigh, smiling shyly.

"Hey!" Calleigh smiled at the twins. Eric noticed her southern accent came out more when she as talking sweetly to the children. "Do you like skiing out there?" Calleigh asked.

"Yeah! It's super fun!" Haleigh exclaimed enthusiastically. "Me and Lucy Jane were skiing all day! Right Lucy Jane?" Her sister nodded vigorously.

"Excuse me, are you ready to order?" The waiter was back at the table shyly smiling at Calleigh and avoiding Eric's gaze.

"Yes we are." Eric nodded and proceeded to read what he wanted off the menu, Calleigh following suit.

"It'll be a few minutes." He informed them before walking off, afraid of what Eric might say to him if he lingered this time. When Calleigh and Eric turned back to talk to Lena and Eli once again, the two young girls were back at their own table.

"Are you going to that dance tonight?" Eli asked them.

"We're thinking about it, are you?" Eric answered.

"We hope so, we have to get Paul to agree to watch Haleigh and Lucy Jane and convince him he can't come to the dance. Teah met a boy today on the slopes so I think she's going to the dance with him, right honey?" Lena smirked at her husband who made a face, obviously not liking the idea of his daughter going out with a boy. "Eli doesn't think that Teah's old enough to go to dances with boys." Lena explained.

"She isn't!" Eli protested.

"Eli- she's seventeen, that's plenty old enough." Lena laughed.

"Is not." Eli added quietly, under his breath making Calleigh and Eric smile.

"Someday when you have kids you'll understand." Lena told them.

"We're not-" Calleigh started.

"Oh sorry- forgot." Lena shrugged. "Well we better let you get back to your meals," She gestured to the waiter who was on his way over, "And hopefully we'll see you later tonight."

"Nice meeting you!" Calleigh smiled, turning back to their table which was being served.

A/N: Alright, thanks SOO much to everyone who's been reviewing, I really appreciate it! I hope that you're still liking it- be sure to let me know what you think!

Thanks!


	9. Chapter 9

CHAPTER NINE:

A/N: Geeze, I just totally spilt syrup and icing sugar from my French toast alllllll over me haha im SUCH a klutz, anyways, thanks for the reviews and here's the DANCE!

"Dinner was great!" Calleigh exclaimed happily as she and Eric left the dining area.

"It was." Eric agreed. "Lena and Eli seem nice, I hope we meet them again tonight."

"Yeah, me too." Calleigh smiled. "I remember the first time I went out with a boy, my dad was livid."

"I can imagine, I watched it happen three times. It's funny though, how my dad hated my sisters' boyfriends, but neither of my parents ever minded my girlfriends." Eric remembered.

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded, "I guess it's just the way parents think about it, although it isn't necessarily true, they think the boys hurt the girls so the girls need the protecting and the boys can do whatever they want."

"Stress the not necessarily true part; I cannot count how many times I got hurt by a girl." Eric remembered.

"Wasn't true for my case either, I never got hurt by a boy when I was growing up. You know me; I was out of there before I could get hurt, although I never got the chance to be happy either while using that philosophy." Calleigh shrugged.

"Yeah." Eric nodded. He knew little bits and pieces about Calleigh's life growing up, but he didn't know much. That was the way Calleigh liked it, so that's the way it'd stay until he could find a way to get her to let him in.

"Yep." Calleigh nodded, trying not to smile at their lack of important things to say as they reached their door. Eric shook his head and smiled as he slipped the key into the door and it swung open.

"Dance doesn't start for an hour, what should we do?" Eric wondered aloud.

"Hmm, well it depends, what kind of dance is this anyways?" Calleigh asked.

"Um, a dancing kind?" Eric smirked. Calleigh gave him a playful glare. "I have no idea."

"Let's see if there's any information on it in here…" Calleigh suggested pulling out a book that resembled a menu and listed everything that went on while they were there. "It says it's a dance and there will be alcohol there, but if you're over the age of sixteen you can come with a parent if you wish."

"Guess that means that Teah's coming." Eric laughed. "Poor Eli."

"Yeah." Calleigh agreed, "So really, it looks like it's a dance where you go, sit and drink 'till you get wasted enough to dance, then leave before you pass out or do anything too incredibly stupid."

"Sounds like high school." Eric smirked.

"Maybe yours." Calleigh rolled her eyes.

"You mean to tell me you never once got drunk for a school dance in high school?" He asked incredulously.

"Nope." Calleigh shook her head, not wanting to pursue this conversation right at that time, but at the same time wanting to a lot.

"Why not?" Eric continued, "It made the dances so much more fun…" Then he remembered the little bits and pieces of information he knew about Calleigh's family, matched it with the look on her face and felt horrible. "I'm sorry." He apologized. "I didn't even think of it…"

"It's fine Eric." Calleigh tried to reassure him.

"No it's not, I was being stupid." He told her.

"You were right though." Calleigh shrugged, "Well if I'm guessing what you're thinking correctly you're right."

"Your Dad?" He looked for confirmation, and found it when she nodded.

"I couldn't drink, not after seeing what it did to him. How he didn't remember what he'd done the next day, how he couldn't control himself at all. I didn't want to be like that." Calleigh whispered. She'd never really talked about how she felt growing up with an alcoholic father before, but it had a great impact on her years growing up, obviously.

"I understand." Eric sympathized.

"Do you Eric?" Calleigh challenged. "Your family is perfect, how could you understand?"

"Cal, my family is not perfect. We're different; we went through a lot together, starting a new life in this country. My parents had friends in Cuba, they had a life, and they left it all behind without a second thought to give my sisters and I an even better, easier life. They sacrificed everything, even their lives, for us. It was a completely different situation to begin with." Eric tried to explain.

"Yeah, you guys loved each other." Calleigh pointed out.

"Calleigh, I've only met your Dad once or twice, but he loves you- I can tell." Eric told her.

"He loves me when he's sober at least." Calleigh shrugged.

"I'm sure he loves you always, no matter what." Eric reassured her.

"Eric you really don't know what your talking about." Calleigh told him.

"Okay, okay." Eric gave up on the discussion, "But seriously Cal, I'm here for you if you ever need to talk about anything, anytime."

"Thanks." Calleigh smiled. "I'm going to go get ready for the dance, alright?" She originally wasn't going to change before the dance but decided that she was going to. Besides, almost everyone there was going to be drunk anyways, it's not like what she wore would matter. Also, she was really upset over the conversation she and Eric had just had, but it did make her feel unsettled as talking about her past always did, and she knew one way to make that unsettled feeling go away, and that was attention- lots of it. And when it came to getting attention, she was a pro when she wanted to be.

"Sure." Eric nodded, flopping down on the bed in a way that was getting familiar to him as he flipped on the TV while Calleigh headed into the bathroom to get ready for the dance. He hoped she wasn't too upset over their conversation, he couldn't say he wasn't. He hated seeing Calleigh unhappy- and during that conversation, well, she certainly wasn't enjoying it. He'd make it up to her at the dance, he was sure of that. If there was one thing he was good at other than investigating crimes, it was dancing. "Let the fun begin." He muttered under his breath, before frowning as he realized he was talking to himself and focusing his attention on the TV.

A/N: Okay, so I didn't even get to the dance yet, and it wasn't very long, but I wanted to post SOMETHING. Alright, reviews muchly appreciated! Thanks to everyone who's been reviewing thus far!


	10. Chapter 10

CHAPTER 10:

A/N: Okay- dance in this chapter, I promise! Ughh, I'm super mad at the TV show right now though because of all their super cute Calleigh/RYAN moments and I hate Calleigh/Ryan-ness lol and ugh I wish they were Calleigh/Eric moments but ohwell. I have to live in fanfiction at the moment haha.

--&

Calleigh re-examined her appearance in the mirror for what seemed like the millionth time, but in reality was only the fifth or sixth since she'd completely completed her ensemble for the evening. Wearing more makeup than usual, her green eyes were the first thing you'd noticed when you looked at her face as they were beautifully lined in black eyeliner which was bolder than she'd usually wear, but she felt a definite need for attention at the moment. Her hair was pulled up in that semi-fancy way that she loved to wear it, but her outfit was the major attention grabber. She wore black heels, her preferred style of shoe because of her short height, a tiny black halter top with a plunging neckline revealing much more cleavage than she'd usually wear out in the evenings, and would never dream of wearing to work, complete with a short black skirt ending above the knee. She had no idea how everyone else at this dance would be dressed, but truthfully, she didn't care. Every time she thought about her past, an activity she liked to minimize as much as possible, she felt like she was still a helpless little girl trying to convince her father to stop drinking, and when he was drunk, trying to stay out of his way. When she felt like this, the only cure she could find was living right in the moment and concentrating on how alive she was- which she did by dressing up boldly, going to clubs, and attracting attention. It was a stupid thing to do since half the time she ended up either not enjoying herself at all and fending off drunk guys all night, or enjoying herself way to much and having to get up in the morning with a killer hangover, no memory of the previous night and a promise to herself to never do that again which was forgotten the next time she felt the need.

"Cal! We're going to be late!" Eric called from outside the door. "It's been fifteen minutes- I knew you couldn't get ready…" Calleigh opened the door and sauntered out, rendering Eric speechless and causing him to stop talking mid-sentence.

"We're going to be late?" Calleigh kept her expression innocent, pretending she didn't know the effect she was having on Eric, her Southern accent becoming more pronounced as she tried to keep from laughing.

"Um, uhh…" Eric tried to form a coherent sentence but was having great difficulty. _Get it together Delko! _He scolded himself. "You look… amazing." He managed to say.

"Thanks." Calleigh smiled, "So you were saying?"

"Oh… we're going to be late…" Eric blushed, "But you're out here now, so we can just go…"

"Right." Calleigh nodded and for the first time noticed Eric had changed his clothes as well. "You look good too." He was wearing jeans and a tight white muscle shirt showing off all of his muscles, which Calleigh guessed he put a lot of work into. "Well let's go."

--&

As they neared the location of the dance, they could feel the bass pounding on the floor beneath them, the music getting louder with every step. When they finally reached the doors to where the dance was being held, they were let in by the men who were standing outside, obviously checking ID's of the younger guests to make sure they were old enough to attend the dance, and if they weren't, to make sure they had a parent with them. Seeing as Calleigh and Eric both looked well over eighteen, they were let in right away. "It sure is… loud." Calleigh practically yelled right in Eric's ear.

"You can say that again." Eric nodded, smiling at the close proximity of their bodies that was necessary if they simply wanted to talk, or rather, yell. Moving farther into the room, they could see that the large room was already getting packed full, and the start time was only twenty minutes or so before they'd arrived.

"Want to get something to drink?" Calleigh asked. Eric just nodded. He knew how easily you could lose your voice from yelling back and forth in simple conversation at dances and clubs, and he didn't want to lose his voice for the rest of the trip. After giving the bartender their orders, they waited patiently while he made their drinks and then headed over to wear they had an area for those taking a break from dancing filled with over stuffed chairs and couches on the far side of the room.

"This is a pretty sweet club." Eric observed, trying to start some sort of conversation.

"It is." Calleigh nodded, taking a sip of her drink. Eric didn't know what to start a conversation about right then, and since talking itself was hard to do, he took the chance to sit back and admire Calleigh's outfit because he didn't know if he'd ever get the chance to see her so… boldly dressed ever again. He admired the fact that she knew she had the ability to look hotter than most of the hottest girls he'd hook up with at clubs and bars, yet she didn't need to flaunt it, and when she did, she wasn't conceded and bitchy like the girls he'd meet in Miami's clubs. "Want to dance?" Calleigh asked with a smile on her face that Eric could not say no to. He put his drink, which was still half full, down on the table in front of them next to Calleigh's empty glass.

"Definitely." Eric nodded, grabbing Calleigh's hand and walking across the room to the designated dance floor with her. Moving right through the crowd of people until they were nearly in the middle of the drunken couples who were dancing not very impressively all around them, Eric decided they had found a good spot to dance and that's exactly what they did.

Calleigh was amazed at Eric's dancing skill. He was a much better dancer than most guys she'd ever danced with, and he knew it too. After two or three songs, Calleigh and Eric began to attract a lot of attention from the couples around them, and Calleigh was very pleased with this, since it had been her goal of the night to live in the moment and attract attention, she didn't like it when she didn't succeed. After a few more songs, Calleigh was starting to get tired of dancing- she needed a break. "I need to go get another drink." She told Eric before heading in the direction of the bar. Before Eric could turn and follow her, which was what he was planning on doing, another girl had taken Calleigh's place in his arms and started to dance with him. He didn't feel like dancing with any girl but Calleigh, but he knew that it'd be rude if he just left in the middle of the song, so he just shrugged and continued dancing. Calleigh was hoping that Eric would have followed her to the bar, and understood when he didn't. Eric was a great dancer and no doubt another girl would have started to dance with him as soon as she left, she knew that it would happen, but still she also knew that she had somehow hoped that Eric would follow her out of the crowd but she now realized how silly her thoughts had been for her and Eric were only _friends_ and lately, she'd been forgetting that a lot. As she finished up her third drink of the night, she knew that she was getting a bit tipsy, but she didn't care because that was half the point of this 'living in the moment' idea she was practicing tonight. It was then, as she sat her third empty glass down on the table in front of her, and she stood up to go and find Eric that she felt someone's arm snake around her waist. At first, she thought it was Eric, but after a second, she realized it wasn't because Eric's arms were way more muscular than these.

"Hey Blondie" A deep drunken voice slurred out. Calleigh froze, she didn't know what to do. She was too tipsy to fend off this guy herself, and Eric was out dancing with some other girl, too busy to care about her. When had this attention seeking, live in the moment night turned into a self pity party? She spun around to face the man and saw that he wasn't too much taller than her, and was one of the least attractive guys she'd ever talked to with his large beer belly, horrible taste in clothing, disgusting teeth and uncombed, dirty hair. "Let's dance." He pulled her towards him again but she managed to struggle out of his grip seeing as he was more drunk than she was. She had angered him now though, and he grabbed her arm causing her to wince as he pulled her towards the dance floor.

"Let go of me." She raised her voice in hopes someone who was at least a bit sober around them would come to her rescue, preferably Eric, but she knew that wouldn't happen.

"Hey man, let go of her." A tall guy came up behind the short drunk and gave him a push.

"Get out of here, I saw her first." The drunk made an attempt to push the guy back but missed and stumbled backwards and with one last look towards Calleigh walked away.

"Thanks." Calleigh smiled at the man who'd helped her. He was tall and handsome with the bluest eyes she'd ever seen and blonde hair that could rival hers. "I'm Calleigh."

"Daryl." He shook her hand with a smile, showing off his perfect teeth. Calleigh smiled back flirtatiously. What was it about this guy? Not only had he saved her from the disgusting drunk, he was also very handsome and polite. "I hope you don't mind me asking this, since I just stopped you from dancing with that other guy but, do you want to dance?"

"Sure." Calleigh nodded, accepting Daryl's hand as he led her towards the crowd of dancing people. Ironically, Daryl chose a spot only feet away from where Eric was dancing with some gorgeous brunette. Calleigh was getting rather frustrated with herself. Here she was, dancing with a very handsome guy who'd just saved her from a groping drunk, she was already tipsy and her memory shouldn't have been the sharpest and still all she could think about was Eric Delko.

"Did I tell you how beautiful you are?" Daryl whispered in her ear as they danced to a slow song. Calleigh giggled.

"Did I tell you how handsome you are?" She returned.

"Well you're the most gorgeous girl here." Daryl challenged. Calleigh was tempted to tell him he was the most handsome man there, but she'd be lying, and Calleigh didn't like to lie.

"Thanks." She uncharacteristically giggled again. Daryl just smiled at his luck of saving and now dancing with this beautiful, obviously Southern, girl who was everything he'd ever wanted and more.

--&

A/N: Okay, weirdo ending, I know and I was going to continue with Eric's POV but that'll come at the beginning of next chapter. So there was the beginning of the dance. I actually forgot this was a Christmas story hahahahaha that's how much of a loser I am, but Christmas will come soon I guess… haha so sorry if by prolonging this trip a bit I'm contradicting things I said at the beginning of the story but I'm just stupid that way so k! Please review and thank you sooo much to everyone who's been reviewing! You guys ROCK!


	11. Chapter 11

CHAPTER 11:

A/N: Finish of the dance here. Thanks A LOT! for all the reviews again! You guys are AWESOME && I love you.

Ha, on with the story.

--&

Eric didn't know how long it'd been since Calleigh left to go get a drink, but he knew that she should have been back by then if she was coming back. What if something happened to her? He should have left and followed her, screw the other girls' feelings… the only girl he really cared about was Calleigh anyways. What if someone started bugging her, and knowing Calleigh and her mood tonight, she'd probably be a bit drunk and unable to fend them off… she could be in trouble right at that very second and he wouldn't know because he was dancing with some brunette who's name he didn't quite catch. And that's when he heard it, Calleigh's laugh. He looked over the brunette's shoulder to see Calleigh dancing with a tall handsome guy who was whispering in her ear. Jealousy. It hit him like a ton of bricks, but really, what did he expect? Obviously he knew he wouldn't be the only guy there to find Calleigh attractive, and what did he expect her to do? Sit and wait patiently while he danced with a few girls until he finally decided he wanted to dance with her again? What the hell had he been thinking! He hadn't even had enough alcohol to blame it on that yet either. "Who are you staring at?" The brunette asked Eric, after realizing his eyes were no longer on her, but gazing at someone over her shoulder.

"No one." Eric shook his head and tried to concentrate on her.

"You were staring at someone." She pressed.

"Okay, I was staring at my friend." He admitted.

"Your friend?" She inquired.

"Yes. We work together, she came with me here." Eric tried his best to explain.

"Oh, but you aren't together, together?" She wanted to make sure she was dancing with someone else's boyfriend.

"No." Eric sighed.

"But you want to be?" She sensed.

"Maybe, but she wouldn't go for me." Eric almost wanted to laugh. Here he was, dancing with a beautiful girl, and they were talking about how he was in love with Calleigh.

"You?" The girl looked doubtful, giving him a once over, "She'd be crazy not to."

"Thanks… but really, she wouldn't. She's… unique, I don't even know how to describe her." Eric laughed.

"Where is she?" The girl wondered.

"Behind you… the blonde dancing with the tall guy." Eric turned her a bit so she could locate Calleigh with her eyes without making it obvious she was looking at someone.

"I can see why you like her." The brunette smiled at him.

"Not only that though, she's an amazing person." Eric smiled with a faraway look on his face.

"By the way, I'm Hanna." She smiled.

"Eric." Eric smiled back at her. "Where are you from?"

"Louisiana." Hanna answered.

"Ah, that's where the accent's from." Eric laughed.

"Where are you from?" Hanna returned the question.

"I'm currently residing in Miami." Eric answered.

"So that's where _your _accent's from." Hanna rolled her eyes.

"You could say that." Eric shrugged with a smile. "Do you want to go get a drink?"

"Sure." Hanna nodded.

"Hanna Cooper!" Hanna stopped, and Eric did the same. Cooper must have been her last name. Wait- he recognized that voice!

"Calleigh Duquesne!" Hanna spun around and smiled, hugging Calleigh in a way Eric had never seen Calleigh hug anyone before, little lone in public. "How've you been?"

"I've been great, oh hey Eric!" Calleigh smiled widely at him. "Oh, this is Daryl, by the way." She introduced her new… dancing partner. "This is my friend Eric, and this is Hanna."

"Pleased to meet you." Hanna smiled flirtatiously at Daryl, which Eric didn't mind at all, Hanna could have Daryl, as long as Daryl didn't have Calleigh.

"Pleasures all mine." Daryl smiled back. _How is Calleigh dancing with this guy, he's all over Hanna when Calleigh, who he's supposed to be "with" is right beside him! He's got his arm around her waist for god's sake! _Eric's mind was screaming. "Hey man." Daryl nodded at Eric, who just barley nodded his head in acknowledgment. He really didn't like this guy.

"So you two've know each other for a while then?" Eric asked, obviously meaning Hanna and Calleigh.

"Me and Duke go way back." Hanna smiled.

"Duke," Calleigh laughed her intoxicating laugh which Eric would do anything to make her do, and shook her head. "No one's called me that since, well, not for a long time."

"Don't tell me you've gone all psycho workaholic on me." Hanna rolled her eyes exaggeratedly.

"I haven't." Calleigh smiled, reassuring her friend.

"But you're close to it." Eric added in, "But you still know how to have fun."

"Unlike some people." Calleigh smirked.

"I know how to have fun!" Eric protested.

"I was referring to Wolfe." Calleigh rolled her eyes.

"Oh." Eric laughed, "Well in that case, I agree with you. Wolfe needs to learn how to have more fun."

"And be less of a germaphobe" Calleigh wrinkled her nose. "He even has me worrying about germs sometimes when I'm around him now."

"Well, we'll have to corrupt him when we get back, I guess." Eric smiled.

"If Valera hasn't already while we're gone." Calleigh added knowingly.

"Right, well off work and onto a different topic," Hanna was getting tired of watching Eric and Calleigh flirt, no matter how cute it was. "Drinks anyone?"

"I'm there." Daryl nodded, shooting off towards the bar, Hanna close in tow.

"Shall we?" Eric held out his arm, in a teasing in manor, very happy at how the night was working in his favour.

"Don't be so silly." Calleigh rolled her eyes. "Let's go."

--&

An hour and several shots later, the party was only getting louder and livelier. Calleigh and Eric had seen Lena and Eli, and met Teah and the boy that invited her to the dance, AJ. Hanna and Daryl had taken more than an instant liking to each other which was obvious to anyone who would happen to notice them, in the corner, tongues down each other's throats. Eric was sure he'd just learned more about Calleigh in the last hour than he had in all the time he'd known her, well the real Calleigh anyways. Hanna wasn't one that believed personal life was, well personal. She shared what to Eric, seemed like every personal detail about Calleigh she knew.

"So, Hanna's nice." Eric struck up some more conversation, since things had been pretty quiet between them since the last shot.

"Yeah…" Calleigh lost her train of thought as her eyes latched onto something across the room which Eric hoped to god was not a guy, because he thought he'd been making some sort of progress… "Do you see that?"

"What?" Eric asked. At least it's probably not a guy.

"Is that Teah? And AJ?" Calleigh discreetly pointed to a more secluded area beyond the bar.

"Shit." Eric was off his stool and to where the couple was in seconds, Calleigh right behind him.

"Hey man," Eric tried to keep things as low of volume as possible, not wanting to start a fight with the room full of drunken dancers. "I think it's time to leave her alone."

"Well what do you think about this?" AJ shot back.

"Hey, take it easy man…" Eric warned, but he was scared as hell.

--&

A/N: Well here's my attempt at some suspense/drama in this fluffy story, haha. And what a liar I am, I said the dance was over this chapter, but it's not, I lied. Things went WAY off track here, I just kind of wrote and waited to see where it went… usually I at least have some form of an idea in my head… anyways, how was it? Please review!


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Okay. So here goes my attempt at the next chapter. I have to actually think of something to happen now, geeze. Haha, I'm so lazy. I can't even think anymore. Yep. Well thanks for all the reviews, you guys rock! Hope you like it, hope I like it… hahah…

PS: A bit of bad language in this chapter, so if you don't want to be reading things like that- don't.

--&

"_Well what do you think about this?" AJ shot back. _

"_Hey, take it easy man…" Eric warned, but he was scared as hell._

--&

Teah and Calleigh stood frozen in place as AJ's fist connected with Eric's face and he nearly fell over. Eric stood up and took a step back. "Yeah, that's what I thought." AJ said to Eric.

"That's what you thought?" Eric responded, "Well this is what I think. I think you're drunk, and I'm a lot stronger than you are and I don't want you to get hurt here. I think you should leave."

"Oh, sorry tough guy. Maybe I should leave, or maybe you should leave." AJ slurred.

"Intelligent." Calleigh muttered under her breath. She was glad that Eric hadn't started a fight with AJ because he did look much stronger, and had a good few inches on AJ, and it wasn't a smart idea to start a fight while surrounded by drunks.

"What was that?" AJ acknowledged Calleigh for the first time in the conversation.

"Nothing." Calleigh answered, and quickly diverted her gaze.

"No I think it was something," AJ took a step towards her and Calleigh saw Eric tense right up, fists balled, in the corner of her eye. She quickly shot him a look that made him think of the last time he had "undermined" her in front of a suspect. She had been furious with him, and he didn't want that right now. He'd let her handle things until they got out of control…

"I don't." Calleigh told him smugly.

"Hey bitch," AJ's voice got harsher now, and a bit louder. "I think you should tell me what you said, because unlike pretty boy over there, I'm much bigger than you."

"Is this your take on the saying 'pick on someone your own size'? Calleigh snickered.

"So what if it is?" AJ stepped closer yet, and Calleigh could see the fury in his eyes. She knew from experience that it wasn't the smartest idea to anger a drunken man, but she did it anyways.

"Then I'd say you need to learn how to interpret sayings in a less violent environment." Calleigh smirked at him. It was then that Teah passed out, thankfully Eric had quick reflexes and was able to catch her and luckily AJ seemed disinterested in Teah now, but had taken up an interest in Calleigh.

"I'd say that you should shut your mouth," AJ leaned right in so his face was merely inches from Calleigh's, "And follow me out of this room, right now." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a gun. "Or something bad could happen."

"That's not even loaded." Calleigh all but laughed in his face, leaving him perplexed. How the hell was she able to notice that?

"Lose the self confident act. You're just a pretty blonde girl who has a pretty boyfriend and I'd guess lives in a pretty little house on your rich daddy's credit cards." AJ rolled his eyes. "Let's go."

"Actually," Calleigh pulled her arm out of his grasp, "I'm a CSI from Miami who specializes in ballistics, one of the best in the country actually." And with that she brought her elbow, which he attempted to grab once again, with his nose, sending him reeling backwards. Seeing him taking a step towards her again, she rolled her eyes and muttered, "Some people just don't know when to give up." She connected her leg with the area in which she knew would hurt him most and gave him a light punch in the arm for good measure. "Here's another saying for you to interpret," She smirked as she bent over above his face, on which he was sporting a bloody nose, "Big things come in small packages. Let's go Eric." By this point, they had attracted the attention of most everyone in the bar, who were having a grand time laughing at the guy who had gotten the shit beat our of him by the pretty blonde girl, as he had so nicely put it. Eric was amazed by Calleigh's show of self defense, and with Teah passed out over his shoulder, made his way out of the dance.

"Calleigh, that was…" Eric trailed off, not sure of what to say when they exited the room.

"Surprising?" She guessed, with a smirk.

"Sure." He nodded, shifting Teah. "Let's get back to our room, alright?"

"Can't carry all that dead weight?" Calleigh joked, knowing he'd carried much heavier 'dead weights' than that.

"Funny girl." Eric smirked as they headed down the hallway.

--&

Ten minutes later they were situated in their hotel room, Teah was still passed out and was presently laying on couch. "Uh, Eric what happens when she wakes up?" Calleigh wondered.

"What do you mean?" Eric asked, brow furrowed.

"Well, she's met us what, once? And she was probably pretty drunk at the time, considering her state now. She'll have no idea who we are…" Calleigh trailed off, figuring the rest was pretty self explanatory.

"Right, that." Eric shrugged. "We'll just explain what happened, I guess. She seems like she's a pretty easy going girl, going out with some guy she just met on vacation and getting wasted? Besides, I know I don't have the energy to go find Eli and Lena and explain it all to them now, do you?"

"Definitely not." Calleigh shook her head. "That was a crazy dance."

"Are you referring to the dancing part, or the fight you were in?" Eric asked, jokingly.

"The fight." Calleigh laughed. Again with that intoxicating laugh, Eric thought, proud he had been the source of it that time.

"And you still look perfect, even after fighting some guy." Eric said seriously. He hadn't meant to, sure he'd been thinking it since she'd first hit the guy… but he hadn't meant to tell her.

"Thanks." Calleigh was trying to keep herself calm. He thought she looked perfect? That wasn't something she heard from Eric Delko everyday! He was probably still joking, she told herself.

"So, what do you want to do now?" Eric wondered, collapsing on the bed. "I guess I'll get my pajamas on in the bathroom first, then you can if you want."

"Sure." Calleigh nodded as Eric headed towards the bathroom. She went to her suitcase and instantly smacked herself in the head. Shit. She had not been planning on sharing a room with Eric when she packed that suitcase, was the only thought running through her mind as she located her pajamas. She normally wasn't a self conscious person, but when she was going to be wearing her favourite silky, lacy pajamas in front of Eric… suddenly she was.

"Bathroom's all yours." Eric told her as he stepped out, wearing only pajama pants, making Calleigh even more self conscious than she already had been as she couldn't take her eyes off his amazing, muscular chest.

"Thanks." She managed to get out before grabbing her pajamas and heading into the bathroom. It was now Eric's turn to think as Calleigh changed. He couldn't help but notice the lace he was sure he'd seen on her pajamas and the lack of material she'd been holding, at that. Then he realized that she probably hadn't planned on anyone but herself seeing her pajamas on the trip. He took a deep breath. If she was wearing lacy pajamas that lacked in material, he'd have to be wearing a lot of self control. That was the last thought that crossed his mind as Calleigh stepped out of the bathroom.

--&

A/N: Hahahhahahaha okay. So that was a bit… different. But I think that if some guy insulted Calleigh and then pretty much assaulted her, grabbing her arm etc, she'd have beaten him up hahahaha. So anyhow, please review! Thanks a lot for reading!

Wow I just twitched. I think it's time for bed!


	13. Chapter 13

CHAPTER 13

A/N: Ha okay I don't know what I'm about to write, but hopefully someone likes it a bit. Thanks to you guys that reviewed, you're awesome! PS: Is anyone else in the Canada/US region area where Season Four is about to end SUPER SUPER STOKED about what's supposed to be happening in the final four eps! I am! PS: I think I already did some love realizations, but here's some more, because I'm forgetful like that at one in the morning:P.

--&

Calleigh wished she had brought something else to wear to bed, but unfortunately her other pair of pajamas weren't any better. She wasn't usually a self conscious person, because she knew she shouldn't have to be embarrassed of her body, she had nothing to be embarrassed of, but now, with Eric, she suddenly was. Sighing, she brushed out her hair slowly, and then her teeth then washed her face and finally she had no choice but to exit the washroom. She had to leave the few inches of wall that were presently separating her from Eric, in his topless form, and his gaze on her barley clothed one. Oh well, she'd have to deal with what came when it came. She pulled open the bathroom door and exited, trying not to look as nervous as she felt, although she still couldn't get her mind around the reason she was nervous. This was just Eric, her best friend. Her incredibly handsome, sexy, muscular best friend…

Eric sighed and shut his eyes tightly as he heard the bathroom door open. Control Delko, Control. His mind was telling him. He opened his eyes so Calleigh wouldn't think he was completely retarded, watching TV with his face scrunched up and his eyes closed. And he saw her. Black lace and what appeared to be silk barley covering her body. "Hey." He managed to get out and what he hoped was a normal voice.

"Hey." Calleigh answered, similar things running through her mind as were in Eric's.

"So, when do you think Teah will wake up?" Eric asked, trying to get his mind off how hot Calleigh looked…

"Probably not for a while. She must have had a lot to drink, I mean I think I saw her take three shots, and she was already pretty drunk when we met her at first." Calleigh estimated.

"I hope Eli and Lena don't get too worried about her." Eric said.

"Yeah." Calleigh agreed, "But I don't really feel like going and finding them at this moment…" She gestured to her attire and smirked.

"Yeah." Eric swallowed.

"By the way, sorry about this… I didn't pack anything else… I didn't plan on sharing a room." Calleigh tried to explain, but Eric cut her off.

"Calleigh, it's fine. I don't mind, really." Eric reassured her, and she visibly relaxed.

"Alright." She smiled and sat down on the bed next to Eric. "So this has been a pretty crazy start to our vacation hasn't it?" Calleigh laughed. Eric smiled. It was almost too much, her, in those pajamas, laughing that intoxicating laugh. Just almost.

"It has." He agreed. "But I'm definitely telling everyone about how you beat up AJ when we get back."

"Well, I'll tell everyone about the receptionist who had a mad crush on you." Calleigh giggled uncharacteristically.

"At least we'll be even." Eric sighed.

"This trip is far from over, Delko." Calleigh smirked.

"You are correct." Eric smirked back at her. "But, what do you reckon Ryan would think if we went back and I told him you were super ticklish?" This caused Calleigh's face to go dead straight.

"Eric Delko," She started to warn before she was cut off by his hands creeping threateningly close to her. "Don't you dare…" But she couldn't finish her sentence because Eric's hands had darted to the exposed skin on her stomach.

"Two to one for Eric Delko." He taunted her triumphantly as he continued tickling her, attire forgotten completely.

"Eric… stop… right… now!" She managed to get out in between struggled breaths and shrieks.

"What was that Calleigh?" He teased, knowing exactly what she said, but he did slow his tickling down considerably so she could catch her breath. It was then they realized what an awkward position they had gotten themselves into. Eric was straddling Calleigh's lap with his hands laid flat across her completely exposed middle, and her hands laying flat against his chest. Tickling ceased and a blinking contest ensued. Green eyes gazing intently into brown. Calleigh didn't know exactly what to think of what was going on, they had definitely been flirting, and then Eric had tickled her… and now neither of them wanted to break the intensity of the gaze they were sharing. Eric was happier than ever, for Calleigh had been flirting back with him, she hadn't gotten mad when he had tickled her, and now, she seemed to be just as content as he was to stare into each others eyes like there was no where else in the world they'd rather be, because for him at least, there wasn't.

"Ughh." They heard a voice groan from across the room. "Where am I?" Eric quickly rolled over to the other side of the bed allowing Calleigh to get up.

"Hey," She called quietly to Teah, knowing that she'd either still be drunk or have one hell of a hangover already. "I'm Calleigh Duquesne, and that over there is Eric Delko… we brought you home from the dance… we're friends of your parents."

"Ughh." Teah groaned again, and then chuckled sort of. "Isn't this what parents always warn their kids about when their little? Don't ever go anywhere with anyone, even if they say they're your parents friends…" Calleigh chuckled quietly too.

"Well don't worry, you're safe with us… we're also police officers from Miami… we're here on vacation." Calleigh explained.

"Shit! You're cops? Don't I get in trouble for underage drinking or something now?" Teah groaned, feeling her headache getting worse.

"Nah, we don't have jurisdiction here." Eric joked. "It's cool; we just want to make sure you're okay. Do you remember anything?"

"Not really… I mean I remember going to the party, dancing… then drinking…" Teah struggled. "What happened? Did I pass out?"

"Yeah, and AJ turned out to be not as nice as you thought he was." Calleigh told her. "He was trying to kiss you, or something along those lines, and you were protesting, but it didn't do much considering your level of intoxication. Eric and I noticed, and intervened."

"Is that how you got that big bruise and cut on your jaw?" Teah wondered, feeling guilty.

"Yeah, but it's alright… I'm just glad you're okay." Eric told her with a smile, and Calleigh took notice of the bruise that was starting to form on Eric's chin for the first time that evening, for she had been so absorbed in other thoughts that she hadn't thought to ask him how his face was doing from where AJ hit him.

"So what happened? You beat him up?" Teah smiled.

"No, I didn't." Eric answered.

"Oh well, at least I didn't miss a good fight then." Teah joked.

"Oh but you did." Eric told her, "Calleigh beat him up." He chuckled.

"Well thank you… and sorry I missed it." Teah laughed, and then cringed. "You don't by chance have any Tylenol, do you?"

"Right there, and a water bottle as well… you should try to get some sleep." Calleigh instructed.

"Okay," Teah nodded, "And thanks again!"

"No problem." Eric told her as he headed back into the bedroom and practically jumped onto the bed.

"Teah's out again." Calleigh announced upon entering the room minutes later.

"Alright." Eric nodded. "Are you tried?"

"Nope. You?" She asked.

"Nope." He answered. Neither were quite sure of what to say. Finally Eric spoke. "So those are some interesting pajamas you've got there Cal." He smirked, making her blush and become all subconscious again.

"Yeah…" She wasn't sure how to respond to his comment, then began wondering why she was letting Eric make her self conscious, why wasn't it the other way around? "If they're making you uncomfortable, I could always take them off…" She trailed off for a minute after seeing Eric visibly swallow, "and go see if they sell more materialistic pajamas…"

"No, those are fine." Eric told her quickly. "I mean, you wouldn't want to have to go through all that trouble, and if you did, I supposed I'd have to find a shirt to sleep in…"

"And we wouldn't want that. I mean, I rather like admiring you." She decided she mightaswell push some boundaries… she had had a bit to drink so if worse came to worse, she could always blame it on that…

"Why thank you." Eric smiled at her. "And while we're being honest, I rather like admiring you as well."

"You haven't seen nothing yet Delko." Calleigh smirked at him as he visibly swallowed again.

"Oh really?" He managed to get out in what he hoped was a normal voice.

"Really." Calleigh smiled brightly, inwardly scolding herself for being so subconscious and nervous before when she could have been having so much more fun.

"Was that an invitation?" Eric decided to play along… this was what he had hoped would happen…

"Was that an invitation?" Eric raised an eyebrow.

"More like a challenge." Calleigh smirked, before rolling over and pretending to sleep.

"A challenge?" Eric had waited for Calleigh to say something more after she had rolled over, but she hadn't, and he knew she wasn't asleep due to her rather irregular breathing, so he decided to strike up more conversation.

"Yes, a challenge." Calleigh rolled back over to place him. "And until you think of an answer to it… I'm going to sleep." Calleigh had given him everything she was going to. She had taken a chance, and let him know she was interested in starting something with him… now it was his turn to take a chance and actually start something.

Eric wasn't sure what to say, or what to do, or answer, as Calleigh had phrased it. He figured that this was her Calleigh-like way of letting him know she was interested in him… but he wasn't sure how to approach letting her know he felt the same way. Should he act as boldly as she had? And if so, in words or with actions? Or was he to take the more subtle route? Well that hadn't gotten him too far yet… Semi making his decision he tried his best to shut off his thoughts. "Calleigh?" He asked and she turned around. Sort of successfully turning off the rational part of his brain, he planted his lips squarely on hers. He was nervous as hell, and his mind was screaming that he was probably moving too fast, but coherent thoughts were quickly freeing his mind as he felt Calleigh responding to the kiss. But thoughts fleeing heads was as far as the kiss developed as they heard a loud knock on the door…

--&

A/N: Okay so yay! Only thirteen chapters and we've had our first kiss! Of course there will be more awkwardness and more kisses yet to come… and they'll come faster with reviews lol! Yuss. Anyhow, thank you for reading! And I AM SO PUMPED for final four in Canada/US area which starts MONDAY! Yeahhhh! Oh geeze, I can't even contain my excitement! Right now my sister is making fun of me because she says I'm making rocket ship noises… haha it's unfortunate that my computer has been moved down here beside hers for the night because not only do I not have internet accesses until tomorrow… we're driving each other crazy! That's the price I pay for dance parties… haha k I'm done.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14:

A/N: Alright so once again, I am home from school sick and so I will write and make myself feel better, yay. NEW MIAMI TONIGHT for the US/Canada region and I have to say I am **pumped beyond belief!** Soo excited! Here we go haha and this chapter, I believe, is quite ooc.

--&

Eric groaned out of disappointment as Calleigh and he reluctantly pulled apart due to the fact that the pounding on the door was growing louder. "We're coming!" Eric shouted, as he rolled off the bed. Shuffling over to the door, he rubbed his eyes and pulled it open.

"Hi, I was at the dance earlier and I thought… well I saw you get into that fight, and I thought you might need some help cleaning up your cut?" Mindy asked as she made her way into the room, first aid kit in hand.

"Uh, really, I don't think my cuts need cleaning…" Eric tried to protest but Mindy took him by the shoulders and forced him down in a chair, which was a funny site, considering the size difference between them. Calleigh who was silently fuming on the bed decided that action needed to be taken against the annoyingly, persistent, flirtatious receptionist once and for all. Sitting up and making sure her pajamas were properly adjusted she got out of bed and seductively strolled up behind the chair Eric was seated in and put her arms around his neck, kissing him softly as she did so.

"Hey baby." She purred with a wink and a smile as Mindy dropped the tube of disinfectant that she had been holding.

"Hey." Eric kissed Calleigh back with a bit more passion then her kiss had held.

"Hey… sorry I don't remember your name?" Calleigh smiled sweetly at Mindy who scowled back at her.

"Mindy." Mindy answered sourly.

"I wasn't aware that the hotel provided this level customer care service." Calleigh smirked. "It's impressive. Well, don't let me stop you, if you feel his wounds need to be cleaned, then by all means clean them." Calleigh smiled innocently.

"Right." Mindy sighed defeatedly as she realized that she could never win Eric away from someone like Calleigh. Mindy quickly finished cleaning Eric's facial wounds and as soon as she had taken a step back and begun to put her first aid products back into her first aid kit Calleigh had moved from her previous position of standing behind the chair, arms around Eric and lips on his neck and was now straddling his lap. "I'll just be going…" Mindy trailed off as she quickly packed up the rest of her things and headed for the door.

"Oh wait!" Calleigh called making Mindy clench her jaw and turn around. "You don't happen to sell condoms anywhere in this hotel do you?" The look on Mindy's face was priceless as Calleigh hoped it would be.

"Uhh, yeah. We sell them in the uh, vending machine down the hall." Mindy answered, obviously very uncomfortable before darting out the door before Calleigh could ask her anything else.

"You are one evil girl Calleigh Duquesne." Eric chuckled as Mindy slammed the door behind her.

"You know you love it." Calleigh smirked.

"Can't argue with that," Eric smiled, "But really, I didn't know you could be so evil. You always seem so sweet."

"I am sweet." Calleigh told him with a laugh, "But I can be evil too, when it's necessary."

"And I'm glad." Eric smiled, "Because I would much rather be here with you than with Mindy."

"I'm glad." Calleigh mimicked him with a smile before once again capturing his lips with her own.

--&

It was hours later when Teah awoke. She immediately let her head fall back on the pillow wishing that she had never opened her eyes for the bright sunlight worsened her headache. She tried to remember the events of last night. She remembered going to the party and starting to drink, but nothing more of the party. She remembered lying where she was now and talking to a pretty blonde lady and a sexy Cuban man who told her that they had taken her back to their room from the party because she had been too drunk and the guy she had come with, AJ, was assaulting her? Yeah, that was it. Groaning she opened one eye and spotted a glass of water and bottle of aspirin and slowly reached for it. She wanted to get up and dart for it but she knew that would only make her headache worse. As soon as she had swallowed the aspirin she felt her stomach begin to get nauseas. "Great." She mumbled as she made her way to the bathroom. After emptying the contents of her stomach and only hoping the aspirin stayed down, Teah stumbled back over to the couch and laid there wondering what to do next. She didn't remember the names of the people that she had met last night who she was staying with, she didn't know where her parents were or how worried they were about her, or what time it was.

"Teah? Are you awake?" Came a female voice with a southern accent from the other room.

"Yeah." Teah croaked, the sound of her own voice worsening her headache.

"Did you get the aspirin?" The voice asked.

"Yeah, but then I threw up so I don't know if it's much good anymore." Teah explained.

"Then take another one." A male voice put in.

"Okay." Teah groaned and obeyed. "So who are you guys anyways?"

"Right you wouldn't remember." The man chuckled. "I'm Eric Delko, and this is Calleigh Duquesne."

"You told me that last night didn't you." Teah guessed.

"Yeah, but you were pretty gone last night." Calleigh smiled.

"Yeah." Teah nodded sheepishly, "So where are my parents? Won't they be worried about me?"

"Probably, we should go find them after you get a little less hung over." Eric suggested.

"Good plan." Teah agreed. "So where are you guys from?"

"Miami." Calleigh answered, "And you?"

"Toronto, but we move around a lot for my Dad's work. We've lived in the states and Canada for about equal amounts of time over the past fifteen years." Teah answered.

"That must be hard." Eric sympathized.

"It is, but I've gotten used to it." Teah shrugged. "Weren't you guys drinking last night?"

"Yeah. I already took my aspirin." Eric smiled.

"Duquesne's don't get hangovers." Calleigh smirked.

"You don't know how jealous I am of you right now." Teah told Calleigh.

"Me too." Eric added.

"Well I think that we should channel our jealousy into something positive and go find Teah's parents?" Calleigh suggested.

"Yeah, let's go get dressed and then we can go down to reception and ask where they're staying." Eric added onto Calleigh's suggestion.

"Reception." Calleigh laughed. "Let's just hope Mindy's not working." And with that, Teah took her other aspirin and waited for Eric and Calleigh to change into clothes so they could go return her to her parents.

--&

A/N: ahaha. Weird chapter? I think yes. So yeah, please review! Thank you for reading! My house smells like coconut shower gel or something right now hah it's going to annoy me soon, anyways, hope you liked it!


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter Fifteen:

A/N: So it's now Sunday of May24 weekend, yay, and it's been some crazy fun thus far hah but I think it's mostly done now. Sad. But here we go, and by the way hah just a warning, I'm pretty much taking this to full blown fluff if it wasn't before, well I don't know if it was 'fluff' but really out of character, weird, crazy, okay haha.

--&

"Ready to go?" Calleigh asked as Eric and her emerged from the bedroom.

"Yep." Teah nodded as she opened the door, anxious to get back to her hotel room, shower, change and go back to sleep. The three headed down the hallway towards reception. "So you said before you hoped someone wasn't working here?"

"Yeah." Eric stifled a laugh. "We've had some… unpleasant experiences with one of the receptionists.

"How so?" Teah asked.

"She developed a crush on Eric." Calleigh giggled and Teah smiled as Eric blushed and immediately looked uncomfortable. "And we sort of…antagonized her a bit last night." Teah made a mock half surprised half disgusted face at Calleigh then giggled.

"I definitely have to talk to you guys more when I'm not drunk or hung over because you seem like really cool adults." Teah told them.

"Thanks." Eric smiled, obviously proud that his cool-ness hadn't faded with his youth.

"No problem." Teah replied as they reached the lobby.

"Dammit." Eric cursed under his breath as they saw she was. "I'm not going any further. If she sees me she'll flirt."

"You think?" Calleigh remarked as she continued to walk forward, Teah following her. "You and I will go up and talk to her. Eric might feel uncomfortable, but I don't."

"Alright." Teah nodded with a smile and they made their way to the desk.

"Hi, how may I help you?" Mindy asked. She was bent down below the counter reaching for something, and heard, rather than saw the guests approach the front desk.

"Hi, we need to find out what room Eli and Lena Jenkins are in, please." Calleigh requested and was satisfied beyond belief when she heard Mindy bash her head on the counter when she heard her voice.

"I'm sorry, that is confidential information, and unless you have a sufficient reason for needing it, I can't help you." Mindy informed her, trying to keep her face as professional as possible.

"I'm their daughter." Teah piped up.

"Well then wouldn't you already know the room they were staying in?" Mindy challenged her credibility.

"You think I'm lying? Do I need to show you identification?" Teah challenged her right back.

"I'm simply inquiring as to why you don't know what room your parents are staying in." Mindy defended herself. She didn't think the lazy looking teenager would be so competitive or on the ball, but she should have suspected it judging by the woman she was with.

"There was a problem in our last room, and we were getting a new one. I didn't really talk with my parents after that because I was out with friends I made, and then I was at the dance and then at Calleigh and Eric's room. Therefore I do not know the room number of my parents' room." Teah explained.

"Right." Mindy said in a sarcastic sort of way.

"Just tell us the room number." Calleigh put in.

"So you're a stubborn bitch whether or not your boyfriend is around." Mindy snarled.

"Ouch." Teah remarked.

"Okay, there were so many things wrong with that sentence." Calleigh smirked, "First of all, I am not a stubborn bitch, you're just jealous of me because Eric likes me better. Second of all, Eric isn't even my boyfriend. We were just friends until this weekend and we'll discuss where we stand later."

"You are so a stubborn bitch and I am not jealous of you." Mindy all but yelled at Calleigh, making many guests who hadn't already turned to watch the scene do so. Calleigh just smirked at her, and Mindy surprisingly slapped her across the face. Teah didn't know what to do, because she wasn't really too involved with this argument, nor did she know exactly what it was about, but Calleigh was not going to let some jealous receptionist slap her and get away with it. She slapped her back. Eric was trying to see what the commotion was about but didn't want to get seen by Mindy and so he was still laying low. "You do know you could get in trouble for assaulting a worker here, and get kicked out." Mind pointed out to Calleigh.

"You could get in trouble for assaulting an officer." Calleigh shot back at her.

"Is that what they're calling them these days?" Mindy smirked.

"I was referring to my profession as a police officer, but think what you shall." Calleigh shrugged. "The room number please?"

"203." Mindy sighed dejectedly as she read the number off the computer.

"Thanks." Calleigh smiled sweetly as she turned and walked calmly and collectedly towards Eric, Teah at her side.

"Wow. I've defiantly have to hang out with you guys again some time this weekend." Teah told them as they reached Eric.

"What was going on out there? Seems something interesting happened by the way everyone was whispering amongst each other and it took you guys a really long time to get a room number." Eric wondered.

"We were sort of…" Calleigh wasn't sure how to explain it.

"Mindy was giving us a hard time getting the room number and then she slapped Calleigh so Calleigh slapped her back then they argued for a while then Calleigh won the argument and Mindy gave us the room number." Teah explained briefly, and Eric just laughed.

"Wow, another great story to tell everyone at the lab." He chuckled, "I can picture it now, Calleigh had to beat a room number out of a receptionist. Ryan and Valera will love it."

"I didn't beat her. I slapped her." Calleigh pouted.

"It was still funny." Teah put in.

"And I'm sorry I missed it." Eric added.

"Well if you were there I would have been beating her off you, most likely." Calleigh smirked.

"Shut up." Eric tried to hide his smile at the reality of the fact as they headed down the hall towards room 203.

--&

A/N: Okay, hah so that was a bit weird. I was going to go more into a little 'fight scene' there but I didn't, hah. Tell me what you thought? Pleasee!


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter Sixteen:

A/N: Alright so it's been a while hah and Cara told me to write some more so I did!

--&

They soon reached room 203 and knocked on the door. "Mom! Someone's knocking on the door!" Came a young girl's screeching voice from inside, making Teah automatically wince.

"Okay, why don't you answer it Haleigh." Lena's voice was heard from inside the room.

"Okay!" Came the first screeching voice again, the footsteps bounding towards the door. Finally it swung open. "Teah!" The bundle of energy jumped into her older sister's arms.

"You're home." Lena's voice was filled with relief.

"Yeah. You can thank Eric and Calleigh for that." Teah nodded as she carried her younger sister inside and gave her mother a hug.

"Thank you so much for taking care of her." Lena sighed. "We were worried sick."

"Sorry." Teah shrugged sheepishly. "I'm going to go lay down…" She darted out of the room.

"Good luck." Lena mumbled. It wasn't exactly sleep friendly in the suite. Lucy Jane and Haleigh were shrieking loudly while being chased by Paul, who was making monster noises as he bounded along.

"Try to keep it down kids." Eli called from what Eric and Calleigh assumed would be the bathroom.

"We want to go and play Mommy!" Lucy Jane told her Mother, putting on her best pout and making her pretty blue green eyes as big as she could.

"Lucy Jane, I can't take you down to the arcade right now… Teah just got in and…" Lena tried to explain.

"But we want to go now Mom!" Haleigh piped up.

"Please Mom!" Paul added.

"We could take them!" Calleigh suggested. She usually didn't get much chance to interact with younger children, and she wanted to jump at the chance she had. She occasionally regretted not starting a family, and certainty didn't mind helping watch the kids, especially since it looked as if Lena might have been nursing a bit of a hangover as well.

"I couldn't impose after you already took care of Teah for us." Lena shook her head in protest.

"Oh it was no problem at all." Eric added with a smile, knowing how much Calleigh loved kids, and if Calleigh loved them, he did too. Plus, was he going to pass off the chance of pretending to play parents with Calleigh? No way!

"Really, I couldn't ask you to…" Lena continued with her protests.

"It's fine, honestly." Calleigh reassured her, "You're not asking, we're volunteering."

"If you're sure." Lena sighed in defeat, although she really didn't mind Calleigh and Eric taking her kids out, she didn't want to impose or ruin their vacation by any means.

"Do you guys want to come to the arcade with us?" Calleigh asked, kneeling down, her southern accent thickening.

"Yah! Yah!" Haleigh was jumping up and down with excitement at both the prospect of going to the arcade, and having two new adults to tell stories to because she'd already either told everyone everything she could think of to say, or they'd been there with her when it happened.

"Sure." Paul answered, smiling shyly at Calleigh with a look of admiration on his face.

"What about you Lucy Jane?" Eric asked, making sure the quiet one wasn't excluded. Lucy Jane looked at Eric, wide eyed, and nodded her head yes.

"Alright, well be safe, listen to Calleigh and Eric, and have fun." Lena instructed as she handed Paul money to use in the arcade. "Could you bring them back around three so we could go skiing before dinner?"

"Sure thing." Eric nodded as they headed out the door.

--&

The arcade was, as most arcades are, filled with children of all ages. Haleigh grabbed Lucy Jane's hand and immediately made her way over to the pinball machines. "Awh!" She complained upon reaching them. "I can't see the top of it."

"Me neither." Lucy Jane shook her head. Paul was busy playing a racecar game against another boy his age. Eric smiled and walked over to the two girls.

"Need some help ladies?" He asked with a smile. Haleigh looked at Lucy Jane and they giggled at the fact he called them ladies.

"Yes please." Haleigh answered. Eric easily lifted the tiny girl up and held her in a way so she wasn't going to pull any muscles, and he wasn't going to pull any muscles and she could see the machine.

"Thanks Eric!" She told him.

"No problem Haleigh." He smiled. She was such a contrast to her twin sister who was still staring wide-eyed at the practically strange man in front of her. When Haleigh's turn at pinball was over, Eric help Lucy Jane while she played her turn. Meanwhile, Calleigh was watching Paul and his new friend, Jared, play the racecar game.

"You're good at this game Paul." Calleigh observed, "Do you like cars a lot?"

"Sort of." Paul shrugged through his concentration. Calleigh smiled at the way he moved his whole body along with the steering wheel when he made a turn. Jared was a more relaxed player, but Paul was beating him by a long shot. "So my sister stayed with you guys last night?" Paul asked sceptically. Calleigh could tell that he wasn't as easily trusting as his sisters, most likely because he was older and she was glad to see that kids these days were still aware of safety precautions, even if they were against her.

"Yeah. She came back with us after the dance your parents went to with her." Calleigh nodded smiling reassuringly at him.

"My Dad's a lawyer. What do you do?" Paul inquired, still highly concentrated in his game.

"I'm a Crime Scene Investigator, which is sort of like a police officer." Calleigh explained.

"So you're a cop?" Paul asked, obviously intrigued.

"Not really a cop… but I do work with cops." Calleigh told him.

"So you don't get to use a gun?" He seemed mildly disappointed.

"Oh no. Guns are my specialty. I'm a guns expert." Calleigh told him, and his face lit up with excitement.

"Really?" He asked eagerly.

"Yep." Calleigh nodded.

"That's really cool." He told her, turning his attention, once again back to the game.

"Thanks." Calleigh smiled. Calleigh then decided to go see what Eric and the girls were up to. Turning around, she saw the cutest sight in the world. Eric was holding Lucy Jane while she played pinball. Haleigh was standing beside them cheering on her sister and occasionally smiling at Eric, who she obviously was beginning to admire. Eric put Lucy Jane down and the two girls scurried off to find another game to play. Calleigh walked up behind Eric and wrapped her arms around his waist, making him jump slightly before she told him, "You're going to make a great Dad someday."

"Was that a challenge?" Eric smirked back. Calleigh scowled playfully at him before they went off in pursuit of Lucy Jane and Haleigh.

--&

A/N: Okay, hah so this was fairly uneventful. Is anyone interested in more Mindy stuff or should I just sort of drop that? Please review! Thankyou for reading!


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17:

A/N: Okay, I'm back, slowly hah but here we go with the next chapter! I should be writing essays and doing projects right now… but who needs those:P! hah. And more Mindy stuff this chapter, or maybe next? I don't know until I write it haha. I picked out my glasses today haha I shall look funny with them. Anyhow… I keep forgetting this is a CHRISTMAS fiction! I shall try and focus more on Christmas now, or at least mention it:P. AND all the stuff I am writing about 'graduating' into communities and that is completely made up haha.

--&

After another hour of arcade games, the kids, and Calleigh and Eric, were ready to head home, and possibly out onto the slopes. Dropping the three children off at their hotel room to two very grateful parents, they were thanked, hugged and then back to their own room.

"Do you realize that tomorrow is Christmas Eve?" Eric asked Calleigh who stopped walking momentarily.

"It is!" She exclaimed, hitting her head. "I honestly forgot! I've been having so much fun… wow!"

"Yeah. I forgot too, until I saw this flyer," He pointed to it, as they were passing an elevator, which had a bulletin board beside it.

"Christmas party." Calleigh read aloud, "After dinner on Christmas Eve in the ballroom."

"Ballroom?" Eric crinkled up his nose.

"Ballroom." Calleigh confirmed, as they resumed walking again. "Do you know how to ballroom dance?"

"Yes." Eric nodded, almost in shame.

"Really?" Calleigh hadn't been expecting him too. He seemed more like a wild dancer, not a ballroom dancer.

"My mom made me take lessons when I was younger." He admitted, a slight blush rising to his cheeks.

"I learn something new every day." She smirked.

"And you? Do you know how to ballroom dance?" Eric returned the question.

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded. "But I haven't had to in a long, long time." By this time, they had reached the door to their room, and went inside.

"Why did you have to learn, or did you do it voluntarily?" Eric inquired.

"I had to learn for my 'graduation' into my community." Calleigh sighed, not wanting to go down memory lane, but a part of her was telling herself that opening up to Eric, being honest about her past, would be good for her.

"Graduation into your community?" Eric raised his eyebrows. "Sounds serious." He joked.

"It was, sort of." Calleigh shrugged. "In the part of Louisiana where I lived, when you were fifteen years old you "graduated" into the community which was sort of like becoming an adult. Mostly the whole town came, we all had dates, and we had to go to weeks of ballroom and classical dancing lessons beforehand. The music was all picked and we had to wear white dresses, sort of like a prom just all white, and the guys wore black tux's."

"Sounds… fun?" Eric knew that that wasn't the whole story behind it, but was reluctant to pry. "So how was yours?"

"It is in my top five worst days of my life." Calleigh sighed, willing the tears not to fall down her cheeks. Not yet anyway.

"Aw, I'm sorry Cal." Eric told her.

"It wasn't your fault." She replied.

"Can you tell me what happened?" He hoped she would. She nodded silently, deciding how far back to being.

"A week before the graduation, I came home from dance practice completely exhausted, as my date was, although very good looking, a hopeless dancer, and we had to stay later, and work harder, than any of the other groups. My brothers were never around anymore, I hadn't seen Todd, who was the oldest, in well over a week, Chris, the second oldest in at least four days, and Brett who was fourteen at the time, basically lived at his friends house. My Mom was never around; she lived in her own part of the house in her own fantasy world. My Dad, well, he was at work a lot… and when he wasn't at work, I was finding out why my brothers either forced me to stay in my room, or made me go out most of the time."

"What do you mean?" Eric was almost positive he knew, but it didn't have to be that… it could have been something else?

"He was always drunk." Calleigh continued, staring off into space in a way that was making Eric feel very uncomfortable. The look of pain on her face was as if she was back in Louisiana reliving it all instead of in Ontario with him, on vacation, having fun. Nearly all of him wanted to pull her to him in a hug, to tell him it was all right… but he was correct in guessing this was the first time she'd told anyone about what happened to make her childhood, or teenage years, so traumatic.

"And when he was drunk, he wasn't the same man he was when he was sober. He was angry; he hit them. They wouldn't let themselves hit back, I think Brett tried once. I think, coincidentally, that was the weekend he fell down the stairs and we spent the rest of it at the ER while he was stitched, and casted. I didn't do anything wrong either, I walked in, like I did every night, to find him sprawled out in the living room… I thought he was asleep, so I planned on tiptoeing past him to the kitchen to get a snack. I was in the midst of doing so when he stumbled into the kitchen yelling obscenities at me for making a mess, which I had planned to clean up." Calleigh was blinking back the tears now as he remembered how angry he had looked, and how fearful she had instinctively got. "I tried to tell him that I didn't mean to make a mess, and that I'd clean it up right then, but when I turned around to do so, he grabbed my wrist and whipped me around to face him again. He told me that I shouldn't have made the mess in the first place, and that's when I smelled the alcohol on his breath. I knew he was drunk. He wasn't my Dad anymore, he was an alcoholic. That was the first time. The second was the day before the graduation. I had just come home from my fitting, and I laid my dress out on the sofa and I was going to upstairs and try it on again because I felt unbelievably beautiful in it, and my Dad was yelling at me when I turned around. I was scared that he'd grab my wrist again, I still had a bruise from it, and had to explain it to everyone already, I said I smacked it when I tripped over clothes in my room, I don't know if they bought it or not, but they didn't ask any more questions so it was okay. I ignored him, he was yelling so angrily, so loudly, I couldn't even understand what he was saying. I stepped around him, and tried to make it to my room where I could lock the door and ignore him some more, but this time he not only grabbed my wrist but he hit me across the face, then again and I ran upstairs as fast as I could. My dress, which I had unfortunately taken out of the bag already had blood droplets on it, it was ruined. My face was rapidly swelling. It wasn't bleeding too badly, and I didn't need stitches, so I stayed in my room. I called my friend who was to be driving me to the event the next day, and told her I had come down with the flu. I'm not sure if she suspected anything, I doubt it, she had no reason to… I never got to go to my graduation. It was supposed to be one of the best days of my life, and instead, I was sitting in my room, crying on my bed, wishing my dress didn't have my blood on it, and my face wasn't swollen to a size where I would never consider leaving my room. I was almost angry enough to go to the police and report it. I knew I should, but then he knocked on my door, and he was sober. I let him in, still hostile because of his behaviour the previous day, but he was almost in tears. He asked me why I wasn't at my graduation, and I told him. He cried Eric, my Father cried, and apologized and begged for my forgiveness, and that's when I realized it wasn't him… this was my Dad, the man who had hit me the night before was someone else… And from then on, I took whatever he gave me while he was drunk, and cleaned up after him in the morning, and reassured him everything was okay. I still have to, you know."

"He ruined your life Calleigh." Eric told her, desperately wanting to hold her now, to wipe the tears off of her face, to replace them with a smile. He wanted to make the memories go away.

"He didn't ruin my life Eric…" Calleigh told him, "I'm still here, with you, right? I still have a great job which I love." Eric didn't know what to say. Calleigh was still the victim of an abusive childhood, she still cleaned up after her father even to this day, he guessed. It wasn't long ago her father thought he hit someone with his car while he was drunk, and he guessed that the cycle hadn't stopped since then.

"Yeah." Eric nodded, not wanting to argue. He finally gave into his urge and pulled Calleigh into a hug. The tears, which she was beginning to control, started up into sobs again at this. Eric wrapped his arms tightly around her while reassuring her, "Everything'll be okay Cal, you've got me.

--&

A/N: Past time? Okay. So yeah, hah sorry that the graduation into the community thing was a little weird, but yeah. What did you think of that one?


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter Eighteen:

A/N: SCHOOL IS DONE! Yahh! And I should have all summer to write, because I don't have a real job. But I got an audition call today for a theatre up about an hour and a half away, so if I get and want the part, that means I will be staying up there in a cottage for like three or four weeks, but I could bring my computer I suppose haha. I need a laptop. Anyways, here we go! Thanks to everyone who reviewed!

--&

"So what do you want to do now?" Calleigh asked. She had taken her yearly, holiday trip down memory lane, and was insistent on moving from the past, and focusing on having fun in the present.

"Well we could go skiing?" Eric suggested eagerly. He wanted to cheer Calleigh up and skiing could be a great way to do that. His thoughts were only confirmed as Calleigh nodded vigorously in agreement.

"Sounds good to me!" She told him. "We haven't done enough skiing this weekend!"

"Agreed." Eric nodded with a smile. And so they got dressed, with no complications or interruptions this time, and headed out to the slopes. After picking up the necessary skiing equipment they were all set to go. "Ready to go down the bigger hills today?"

"I think so." Calleigh nodded bravely. She was excited; she had loved skiing on the baby hills, but it almost wasn't worth it, for the time you spent skiing was almost shorter than the long ride back up the tiny hill.

"Great!" Eric smiled brightly. "Well, of course you'll be okay! You have me here beside you… what more could you ask for?" He joked.

"Yeah right." Calleigh rolled her eyes. "Come on hotshot, let's go." They skied over to the line behind a bigger chairlift that would take them halfway up the mountain. Calleigh was scared, but excited as well. She was a natural at skiing, Eric had said that himself, and she knew that he would protect her and that made her feel safer than most things could. As they finally got to the front of the line, and on the ski lift, Calleigh realized just how high they were going, and just how long it would take to get there, and naturally, as it was her first time on the huge ski lift, she got intimidated. Luckily, Eric was a CSI, and sensed her nervousness.

"You'll be fine Cal." Eric told her, moving closer so he could slip his arm around her shoulders in a reassuring manner. She sighed, trying to calm herself down. She wasn't sure if having Eric's arm around her shoulder was helping or making things worse. It was doing anything to slow down her racing heartbeat, but it was convincing her that her heart was no longer racing due to fear.

"Thanks." She smiled at him through her goggles and layers of winter clothing. He really did make her feel better.

"Anytime." He smiled back at her; "I told you you'd be okay if you had me here beside you." Calleigh smacked him in the arm playfully. But she knew it was true.

"So you're enjoying the vacation?" Eric asked, as there was not much else to do on the ski lifts but make conversation.

"I love it." Calleigh sighed contently. "Thank you so much for convincing me to come."

"No problem. I'm enjoying this a lot more than I have in years with you here." Eric admitted.

"I'm glad." Calleigh told him. She wanted to ask him where they stood now, if things would be different when they got back, but she was afraid of the answer. She knew, at least she thought she knew, that Eric liked her in the way she liked him.

"Me too." Eric chuckled. By this time, there were nearly half ways up the hill. The lift didn't get any higher than this so Eric wanted to make sure Calleigh didn't totally freak out if she looked down and saw how high up they were.

"Eric!" She practically screeched. "Look how high up we are!" At this, she moved closer towards him and he tightened his grip around her shoulder.

"It's okay Calleigh, we'll only be this high for a second." Eric told her. But the truth in that vanished as the lift came to a halt. Calleigh wasn't sure if she should scream, cry, or just bury her face in Eric's shoulder. She went for the third option, as it would embarrass her the least, and attract the least attention.

"What happened?" She asked fearfully.

"Don't worry Cal," He told her reassuringly, his hand now rubbing small circles on her back to try and regulate her breathing. "This happens all the time. Someone probably just had trouble getting on or off the lift. I'm sure we'll be going again in a second.

"Well they have damn good timing." She commented, "We're right at the top of the lift."

"Cal, we'll be fine." Eric told her, "Just try and relax."

"Okay." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "It's not working."

"What?" He furrowed his brow.

"I can't relax. I keep thinking the lift is going to collapse, or we'll be stuck here forever. There's no way for them to get us!" Calleigh sighed.

"Calleigh," Eric didn't know how to calm her down. He had to admit, that deep inside, he did feel a bit uncomfortable being stuck in the middle of the biggest ski lift… but he knew that nothing would go wrong. It was just a small, technical problem. "We'll be fine, okay? I promise."

"Promise?" She checked, knowing he wouldn't break one.

"Promise." He confirmed, and she relaxed a tiny bit. He kept rubbing circles on her back in hopes that it was helping her feel comfortable. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I think so." She was relaxing more and more. "Thanks for not letting me totally freak out."

"That wasn't totally freaking out?" Eric remarked sarcastically.

"Oh, shut up." She laughed. She didn't know how happy it made him to hear her laugh.

"So what are your plans for Christmas?" Eric inquired.

"None." Calleigh answered nonchalantly. "I practically never have plans for Christmas. I got the day off and everything, but nothing to do. Every few years I'll go home to Louisiana but I went back there last year, two years in a row overwhelms me."

"Yeah." Eric commented.

"What are your plans?" She asked.

"Crazy Delko family celebrations." He rolled his eyes. "Same thing every year. I go to my parents house, which is usually jammed full of people. I eat until I can't eat anymore then I sit around and try to follow three or four conversations at once, all in different languages." He laughed. "You should come with me, if you don't have any other plans."

"Ah, I'm sure you'll be sick of me by then." Calleigh smiled faintly. His Christmas celebration sounded like everything she'd ever wanted hers to be. "I mean, after this vacation I'm sure you won't even want to be paired with me at work for a few weeks."

"Oh Cal, you have to know that isn't true." Eric told her, "I love every single minute I spend with you, I can't get enough. Now, you may be sick of me…"

"Then it sounds like fun!" Calleigh put in with a bright smile. "I mean, the Christmas thing. I've always wanted to go to a real family Christmas."

"Well, year after year it gets sort of, boring and overwhelming, but I'd love to have you there." Eric told her sincerely.

"Then I'd love to be there. Your family won't mind?" She checked.

"Trust me, if they even notice that you're there through all the other stuff they're attempting to do, they will be thrilled. My parents love you."

"I've only met them a few times." Calleigh pointed out.

"Yeah, but you're an easy person to love." He hoped she got the hint. Then with a jerk the ski lift starting to move again and it wasn't long before they reached the top of the mountain.

--&

A/N: Haha. So CHRISTMAS IN JULY. Oh boy. Well, how was that fluff? I hope it was satisfactory. I did get the part in the play so that means that I'll be super busy with rehearsals then performances, but that's okay, because I usually update faster I guess when I have things to do and I have to fit fanfiction in. With so much free time I don't do much at all hah lazy Dayna. Okay well ttyl!


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Nineteen:

A/N: Okay, well I wanted to write, and Cara told me to write this one, so I am. Hah. I ate too much lately and now I feel sick. Ugh. Stupid food. Well, here we go!

--&

"Eric," Calleigh called. He was standing just over a meter away, but the wind was so loud at the top of the mountain that she could barley hear her own voice. But, somehow he heard her and turned to face her.

"What's up?" He called back, inching closer to her so their conversation would be easier heard.

"I don't know if I can do this." She bit her lip, looking terrified.

"It's really not as far up as it looks." Eric tried to make her feel better.

"Eric! It's huge!" She cried.

"Cal, I know you can do this!" He reassured her. "I mean, you survived the lift…"

"Barley!" She pointed out.

"Oh, you did great!" He encouraged her.

"You're just saying that because I have to get down the mountain." Calleigh pouted.

"Well, you do have to get down the mountain, but I'm not just saying that, I promise. Besides, this is no different from the little hill, it's just like a bunch of little hills in a row, and you dominated those." Eric tried to get her to look at it a different way.

"Eric, the incline is much steeper here than on the little hill." She pointed out. Damn, he was hoping she wouldn't notice that.

"Wait, watch this." He told her, and she made a sound of protest as she saw he was heading down the mountain. He was leaving her up here by herself? What was she going to do? But as she watched him make on perfect parallel turn, then another, suddenly he wiped out completely.

"Eric!" She called, "Are you okay?" She knew he was sort of okay, at least, as she saw his figure moving around underneath the mound of snow. Suddenly he stood up, picked his skis up and climbed back the short distance he had traveled.

"See? You can't wipe out any worse than that, and it didn't even hurt." He smiled at her. She was touched. He just went and embarrassed himself, got himself wet, and probably a bit sore just to prove to her she could fall without dying on this mountain.

"Oh, okay." She resolved. Taking a deep breath, she just wanted to shut her eyes and be back in the lodge but she knew she had to do this.

"You go first," Eric prompted her. "I'll be right behind you. Just remember to keep your snow plough."

"Yes Mr. Delko." She teased. Slowly, she inched up her skis until she couldn't shift her weight without plunging downwards towards the bottom of the mountain. Too bad there were so many trees in the way.

"You can do it," He encouraged her. That was all it took, she shut her eyes for a second as she shifted forward, her skis effectively going over the edge and down the rather steep incline of the mountain. Letting out of a squeal of surprise at the steepness, she fought to gain control of her skis, and her body.

"Snow plough, snow plough," She muttered to herself as she turned her skis so they made the triangle like shape. Leaning forward slightly on her skis, she was able to regain her balance, and turn her hips back and forth so she didn't straight line the entire mountain.

"You're doing great Calleigh!" She heard Eric call from behind her, and she smiled. This was actually kind of fun! She let out a squeal of delight this time as she continued to turn down the hill at a good pace. True, there were other skiers passing her left and right, but this _was _only her second day skiing. She was doing well, at least she thought so. Eric seemed to as well. She glanced behind her for a second to make sure Eric was still there, and he was, but when she turned back around, her eyes widened in shock.

"Eric?" She nearly screamed. "There is a large bump."

"Just turn around it." He called to her calmly.

"I can't! I can't!" She called back frantically. She didn't want to go over the large bump… it was too late. The speed she had been skiing sent her up the mound at a quick pace and before she knew it she was floating through the air. She had that feeling you get in your stomach when you're nervous, or going to high on a swing set, or on a roller coaster perhaps. She may have even enjoyed the feeling of flight if she hadn't been scared as hell of landing this. She saw another skier a bit in front of her land the jump messily and cursed silently under her breath. Eric hadn't gone off of a giant bump when he'd shown her his wipe out, now had he?

"Bend your knees a bit when you land Cal," She heard his voice instruct from somewhere below her. "Just concentrate on keeping your balance." Boom. Snow went everywhere. Calleigh's skis automatically let go of her boots and she rolled slightly away from them, spitting out snow as she went. She wasn't really hurting, but she was very, very cold. "Cal! Are you okay!" Eric called as he quickly unhooked his boots from his skis and rushed over to her side.

"Snow is cold." She moaned.

"I know, I thought you liked it," He smirked, pushing his goggles up above his eyes.

"I don't like it quite as much when it's down my back and in my gloves, and up my sleeves…" Calleigh whined.

"Owh, poor baby." Eric teased. "But really, any pain?"

"Nothing too major." Calleigh told him, sitting up. "My leg hurts a bit from where I initially landed, and my arm, but it's nothing too serious, I can tell."

"You sure?" He checked, obviously feeling guilty for making her go down the hill.

"Positive." Calleigh nodded. "If I wouldn't have landed so roughly I would have thoroughly enjoyed going over that large bump."

"Oh really?" Eric raised his eyebrows as he pushed his goggles back down, only to cover them.

"Yeah." She nodded, with a smile.

"Well, let's enjoy the rest of the trip down the hill?" He suggested.

"Sure thing." She smiled. And they did.

--&

A/N: So this was a REALLY pointless chapter pretty much, but it WAS a ski vacation, and they had to ski sometime haha. Sorry if it was boring. There will be some nice Eric guilt after this though, so look forward to that maybe? Well, please review! Thanks! Oh, and Christmas IS coming in it:P hah. Soon it will be Christmas in August.


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20:

A/N: Good gosh, I have not updated anything forever, and I apologize. I am in a musical thing and we have performances all the time, and when we don't I'm sleeping pretty much haha. It's fun, but unbelievably tiring for me as I usually do nothing but this.

Here we go. Christmas IS coming, I do promise hahaha.

--&

After another forty-five minutes of skiing, and several more successful attempts at the bigger hills, Calleigh was too cold to continue.

"Eric, can we go inside?" She asked. She didn't want to ruin all of his skiing fun, but he wasn't the one that had melting snow all in their snowsuit.

"Sure." He nodded. "You didn't wipe out again did you?" He checked. She shook her head. "And you sure you aren't hurting from before?"

"Not hurting, just cold!" Her teeth were starting to chatter as she spoke.

"Awh, Cal, you're shivering. Let's get you inside quick before you catch a cold." Or worse, he added, but only to himself.

"Okay." She nodded as they quickly headed towards the ski shop. Depositing their skis, they headed for the lodge. Without the skis to make things awkward, Eric slid his arm around Calleigh's shoulder as they walked to provide an extra source of heat to her freezing body, and well, needless to say he didn't mind at all.

"Let's get you inside and warm." He told her, and she just nodded again. She was feeling a heck of a lot better since he had wrapped his arms around her. She didn't know if she was warm, probably not, but at least she felt like it now. They walked in through the lobby, completely oblivious to everything, specifically who was working in reception. Once they had made their way into their room, Calleigh immediately began pulling off her snow clothes, and Eric was in the bathroom running a hot bath. Walking back to where Calleigh was standing, he noticed a rather large puddle of water dripping off of her snow clothes as well as her.

"Gosh Cal, if I would have known how much snow you actually got in your snowsuit after that fall, we would have never stayed skiing so long." Eric shook his head.

"Well, it wasn't that cold after a few minutes, I got used to it. And besides, the vacation is for skiing, and I already made you teach me how to ski…" She explained.

"Calleigh, you didn't make me teach you how to ski, I willingly volunteered. And I would choose you over a sport any day." Eric smiled, and Calleigh did the same, though hers was a shivery one. "Now you get out of those clothes in the bathroom, I started a warm bath for you, that should warm you up before dinner, I bet."

"Thanks Eric." She told him as she headed for the bathroom. As she shut the door, he, almost silently, answered.

"Anything for you."

--&

Calleigh got out of her bath, and got dressed in the warm clothes Eric had placed just inside of the door fifteen minutes earlier. Eric. Just the thought of him made her warmer than the bath had managed to, and it had certainly done the trick. She felt as warm as ever, the sting of the snow gone.

"Cal, you almost done in there? Dinner's nearly halfway over, and we need to get there before it finishes…" Eric called through the door.

"Yeah, I'll be out in a second." She called back. Quickly running the brush through her hair and pulling it back into a messy ponytail, she threw open the bathroom door. "It's all yours."

"Okay. You feeling better?" Eric checked.

"Superb." Calleigh smiled brightly as she went to find some more appropriate dinner attire Eric shut the bathroom door behind him. "Be ready in fifteen minutes." She mock called him.

"I think it's you we have to be worried about." He answered.

Fifteen minutes later, right on time, they were both ready to head out to the dining room. "Did I mention how wonderful you look?" Eric smiled.

"At least three times now." Calleigh rolled her eyes. "But thank you, again."

"Let's go." Eric opened the door, and Calleigh followed him out. "So do you think we'll meet anyone new tonight at dinner?"

"I don't know. But I really enjoyed meeting Lena and Eli and their kids." Calleigh answered.

"Yeah. Do any of your brothers have kids? You seem so natural around them." Eric wondered.

"Chris has two girls." Calleigh nodded. "Olivia will be turning thirteen this January, and Janelle will be turning eight two weeks after that."

"Do you see them often?" Eric was curious to hear more about Calleigh's family. He'd only heard the negative things, but he knew that there had to be some good things about her family life. It sounded as if this might be it.

"Not as often as I like. I suppose that Olivia will probably be able to come down and see me soon, as she's going to be a teenager now. The last time I saw them was at least a year and a half ago."

"We should go visit them sometime." Eric suggested, and then inwardly cringed. We? He wasn't sure if there was a 'we' yet, but he guessed that her response would determine the likeliness of there ever being one. Calleigh was also taken slightly aback at his use of the word we, but only momentarily before she smiled.

"That sounds great!" She answered with a big smile. "I'd really like that."

"Me too." Eric smiled. This trip was working out far better than he'd ever expected it too. By this time they had reached the dining hall, and entered quickly. They were both starving from their skiing adventures that day.

"Calleigh! Eric! Over here!" They heard Lena's voice calling them, and they turned and approached the table that their new friends were sitting at.

"Hey!" Calleigh waved as they arrived next to the table. "Are you guys feeling better?"

"Much. Listen, thank you so much for looking after Teah then the girls and Paul for us. You don't know how much we appreciated it." Lena told them.

"It was no problem, really." Eric assured them.

"Yes, I enjoyed it!" Calleigh nodded enthusiastically.

"Would you like to join us for dinner?" Eli invited.

"Sounds great." Calleigh accepted as they sat down. As Calleigh fell into casual conversation with Lena and Eli, Eric couldn't help but watch her animated face as she talked, and think how beautiful she was, and especially, how lucky he was to be here with him. And there was now a 'we'.

A/N: So I wasn't quite sure how to end that chapter hah but that'd seemed to work okay I think. Christmas Eve next chapter I'm MOST sure.. Well almost most haha. With me, nothing is ever certain haha. Then I'm going to probably do separate stories. One about Christmas with the Delko's, and another about a trip to Louisiana to visit Chris? And more family angst? Yes. Well that is, if you're interested? Please let me know!


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21:

A/N: Only two weeks left of Summer And like, seven days till my birthday. I hate going back to school, blah. Okay. But for now, in my mind, it is Christmas haha. Yeah. Here we go:

--&

"So supper was fun." Eric smiled as they headed back to their room afterwards.

"It was." Calleigh agreed. "But I ate so much, I think I am going to collapse."

"Yeah. I'm just tired." Eric said as he slipped the room key in the door.

"Do you ever get full?" Calleigh rolled her eyes.

"I don't think it's possible." Eric laughed. His laughing, however, was brought to a stop when Calleigh, who had entered the room before him, had somehow managed to trip and pin him to the back of the door when she fell, and he caught her… sort of. He felt her breathing, along with his, quicken at the proximity because neither of them had forgotten the kisses they had shared the night before, even if they had been the slightest bit intoxicated. Calleigh tilted her head so she was looking right into his eyes, and she could see the question he was asking himself, and probably her. Did she want this? Of course she wanted this. She'd wanted it for months now, probably longer if she was to be brutally honest. And she could tell he wanted it. Slowly, standing on her tiptoes now, she pressed her lips to his, and he responded instantly, though he wasn't quite sure if his mind had registered that she was kissing him yet. Calleigh Duquesne was kissing him. Had his plan worked? Or was this just fate taking its course… his mind began to think overtime until it was silenced by the sensation of Calleigh's tongue slightly probing its way into his mouth. Access was granted and the kiss was deepened. Eventually, oxygen was required and they pulled apart breathlessly. Calleigh was still pinning Eric to the door, with her hands on the wood by Eric's hips, her body flush against his, and all either of them could think of was how they wanted the kiss to start again.

"Do you… are you okay with this?" Eric finally asked, catching his breath.

"If I didn't I wouldn't have done that." Calleigh answered with a chuckle of sorts.

"Yeah." Eric breathed. And that was all it took before his lips were upon hers in a suffocating kiss, only this time, there was no need to pull away.

--&

Early the next morning, Calleigh awoke and nearly jumped out of bed when she discovered that she was not alone, and a little more than sleeping had gone on the night before. But her fears, however, were calmed instantly as her mind began to piece together the memories from the previous night and when Eric rolled over, and she took in how innocent and content he looked while he was sleeping, her sense of worry was replaced altogether with a sense of pure happiness that she was sure wouldn't be going away anytime soon. She quickly grabbed her suitcase, which was placed at the foot of the bed and wrapped her robe around herself then headed towards the kitchenette to make them some breakfast, or coffee at least. They hadn't gone down to breakfast in the dining room the previous morning, as they had been preoccupied with Teah, and their own hangovers, but since dinner was always so wonderful, she figured breakfast would be as well.

"Cal?" She heard Eric's voice call croakily from the bed.

"Hey Eric." She smiled brightly, hoping to convey to him that she, in any way, did not regret the previous nights events.

"Is there coffee here?" He groaned, sitting up.

"It's percolating." She answered. He fumbled around the side of the bed until he found his boxers and slipped them on quickly. "I was thinking maybe we could go down to the dining room for breakfast?" She suggested.

"Sounds good to me." Eric nodded. "Dinner's always great."

"That's what I was thinking." Calleigh smiled. As Eric made his way into the kitchenette he gave Calleigh a rather thorough kiss, which she gladly accepted but didn't take any further. "Eric, I have horrible morning breath." She giggled.

"So do I." He shrugged, "Besides, I think you taste sweet anytime." Calleigh just giggled again as the coffee machine signalled it was ready. Eric hastily poured them two mugs full as Calleigh got out he crème and sugar.

"I'll be ready for breakfast in ten minutes okay?" Calleigh called as she began to rifle through her suitcase looking for some clothes that would be good to wear for the majority of the day.

"Only ten minutes?" Eric called mockingly and Calleigh shot him a playful glare. She automatically went to move into the bathroom with her clothes, then stopped and went back towards the bed. She didn't see any reason why she couldn't simply change there anymore.

"So are you excited for ballroom dancing tonight?" Calleigh asked.

"Well, I get to dance with you this time." Eric smiled, making a referral to the last time they went dancing, which had been the previous night. "So of course I am. Though I haven't ballroom danced in a long time, so I probably won't be the best at it."

"Don't worry," Calleigh laughed, "I haven't done it since I was sixteen." She tried to keep smiling, but it was no use. It seemed as if her past had an uncanny way of ruining all the great moments in her life.

"Cal… you have to let that go." Eric knew it was a touchy subject, but it was tearing him apart to see these memories eat away at Calleigh. She didn't deserve this.

"I can't Eric. It's a part of my life." Calleigh sighed. "Besides, if we talk about this now, we're going to miss breakfast." Eric sighed in defeat. He didn't want to intrude on Calleigh's life… but he hated to see her suffer. Sometimes soon he would make her talk about it. She had to do it, and he knew that what she told him was a big step, probably more of a monstrosive step for Calleigh to take in trusting him, and opening up and he didn't know if she'd ever know how much that meant to him.

"Lunch?" He suggested finally.

"Sure." She nodded, grateful he was avoiding the subject for now. She would talk about it with him… eventually. But this trip had been amazing, and she couldn't ruin it. She wouldn't.

--&

A/N: I NEVER know how to end things haha. So I had to go babysit some boy during the middle of this chapter hahaha. And that was like, my first try at describing, or sort of semi describing a kiss ahaha. But there wasn't much description. Ohwell. Reviews? I love them!


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 21:

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed I'm glad you're still enjoying it hah. I bet this chapter will be painfully slow to write, not because I don't have ideas, but I had a biking accident haha, and now I'm all wrapped up on my left wrist, seriously restraining my keyboard use. Bahh. Dislike falling off of handlebars. Anyways, here we go:

--&

Breakfast had indeed been just as delicious as they had hoped it would be. But despite the wonderful food, there had been an air of awkwardness in the air. Not because they had slept together, that wasn't awkward for them at all, that was simply the start of something wonderful. No, the awkward air was due to avoidance of Calleigh's family. Not only because Christmas was often considered a family holiday, and not only because they were surrounded by families, but because of the slight discrepancy they had encountered before leaving for breakfast. Eric wanted to talk about Calleigh's past with her. He wanted her to trust him, to let it go, but Calleigh couldn't do that. She refused, and that made Eric feel as if she didn't trust him though he trusted her.

"Eric…" Calleigh started, as they lay silently, collapsed on the bed.

"Yes?" Eric answered, urging her to continue her sentence, to trust him.

"Are you mad that I won't talk to you about everything that's happened?" Calleigh finally asked.

"I'm not mad." Eric sighed. He really wasn't. To him, mad insinuated that he was angry at her, that he held hostile feelings or spite towards her. Vengeance. No. That was not what he was feeling at all.

"You seem mad." Calleigh decided to continue the conversation. Maybe she would feel better if everything came out.

"I'm not mad, Cal." Eric assured her. "I'm… I don't know which word properly describes it. Upset, maybe. I'm upset you can't trust me enough to tell me."

"You're mad, then." She shrugged. "At least, that seems mad to me."

"If I was mad at anyone, it wouldn't be you. It'd be your family, or anyone else who hurt you in the past." He told her honestly.

"Eric…"

"I know you don't want to talk about it, it's fine." He cut her off.

"I do." She told him. "I think I want to talk about it. I mean, I've been so happy these past few days with you… and then, I started thinking about my family again, and it's killing me, keeping it all inside, not having anyone to talk about it with… I just can't let them ruin another Christmas for me."

"You're sure?" He checked, and she smiled. She knew how much he wanted her to talk about this with him, and yet he still double-checked she was ready before he pressed her to tell him anything. It only made her love him more.

"Yeah." She nodded with a skeleton of a smile. And so they talked. Calleigh told him stories of how she remembered being happy when she was really little. And then, after her younger brother was born, everything took a turn for the worst. Her Mother developed post-partum depression, but refused to take her medications, thus delving her into a world of isolation, depression and solitude. Her father, who was always a family man, began to dissolve as his older sons wanted less and less to do with him, and his wife turned even him away. Turning to alcohol for comfort, he completely ignored Calleigh, and her attempts to make him proud of her, or to make him happy with her. He ignored her for years, until suddenly, he had a drunken revelation, and began to love her like a father should love his daughter. When he was sober. Eric couldn't believe that Calleigh hadn't let a tear fall yet. He was holding her hand, and running his other hand in a comforting gesture up and down her arm. He could see the tears in her eyes, begging to fall, but they didn't. Not until then. Not until she started explaining how she wasn't ever sure whether to be happy her father gave her attention. When he was sober, she loved it. He did things with her, they talked, and spent time together, but when he was drunk, he didn't forget her. That was when the abuse started, and also when Calleigh's duties to clean up after her father started, as well. Duties she still lived up to today.

"Why do you do it?" Eric asked. He had been reluctant to, but his curiosity got the best of him. If his Dad had abused him, he wouldn't have kept contact.

"If I don't, who will?" She shrugged in reply, hastily wiping tears away from her eyes, making her hand the slightest bit damp when she placed it back in Eric's. He didn't know what to say, and she had nothing more to. Then suddenly, he had an idea. It had the possibility of cheering her up, which he wanted nothing more than to do, but it also had the possibility to make her sadder, if that was even a possibility anymore.

"Want to play a game?" He asked, and the twinkle in his eye did not go unnoticed by her.

"Okay." She agreed, albeit reluctantly. She needed to take her mind off the current topic of discussion anyhow. Though, as much as she hated to be wrong, she did feel a bit better after sharing her problems with Eric.

"It's kind of like truth or dare, except only truth, and we both answer the question." He explained. She raised an eyebrow at him. Truth? It was so teenage-esque, but she didn't have a better suggestion of how to waste an afternoon, and she wasn't quite up for another skiing extravaganza, so she nodded in reply. "First question."

"Okay." She was ready.

"How old were you when you had your first kiss?" He asked.

"Very teenage-esque." She complimented him with a smile. "Um, I believe I was…" She had to think about it for a moment, before it all came flooding back to her, and her smile widened. "I was thirteen."

"Who was he?" Eric pressed.

"Wait," Calleigh told him, her smile still present, and for that, he was grateful. "You have to answer first, before asking anymore questions. And really, we should alternate."

"Fine." Eric sighed. "I was fourteen."

"Who was she?" Calleigh asked the question she knew he would have asked anyways.

"Olivia Roberts." Eric recalled, smiling at the memory as well. "You?"

"Jordan Anderson." Calleigh answered.

"First time?" Eric asked.

"Why do you get all the good questions?" Calleigh pouted.

"Because I went first." Eric smirked, and Calleigh's pout became more exaggerated.

"I was twenty. Sophomore year in University." Calleigh told him.

"Freshman year at UOM." Eric answered. "So I was nineteen."

"First crush?" Calleigh asked. She didn't care to know who Eric's first time was with.

"I have to think about this one." Eric laughed. "First actual crush, that I can remember, was when I was eleven. She was the most popular girl in school, and eventually, after much hard work on my part, we went out for a week."

"A week." Calleigh laughed. "Must've been serious."

"We were eleven." Eric defended himself.

"I'm just kidding." Calleigh rolled her eyes.

"I know. Now you answer."

"I was twelve. The first one I remember, anyways." She told him. "He was probably the gawkiest boy in our grade, and I was paired with him on a Science project. After the initial: 'you're a geek, and I don't want to work with you' stage was over, and I actually got to know him, I thought I was in love. The joys of being twelve." She laughed.

"Did you go out with him?"

"No. He didn't like me back." Calleigh scowled at the memory. "Definitely up there in my most humiliating moments."

"He probably thought you weren't serious." Eric guessed.

"I don't know. It's not like it matters anyways." Calleigh shrugged. "Your turn." "Ever been in love?" Eric asked.

"Real love?" Calleigh asked.

"Yeah." Eric nodded. He knew he was delving into hazardous territory by asking that. What if she didn't love him? Well, if last night was any indication, she did, or felt something close to it…

"Okay." Shit. What if he doesn't love me back? "Yes."

"No detail?" He hated himself for not making more specific rules right then.

"I answered the question." She grinned smugly. Safe. "Now it's your turn."

"Okay. Yes."

"What was her name?" Calleigh was glad he had asked the more revealing question that round.

"Calleigh." He answered smugly, taking a risk. She struggled to keep from squealing, or kissing him, so she could answer the question she knew she had to. "You?"

"Eric." She was able to answer and stay safe that time as well. "I love you." She murmured, quietly now.

"I love you too." He answered, amazed. This trip had accomplished far more than he had hoped it to, and he couldn't be happier.

--&

A/N: Oo. Love. Okay, well that was… corny? I duno haha. Review and tell me? I'd love that. Good night! ONLY ONE WEEK LEFT OF SUMMER VACATION. This makes me sad.

"


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 22:

A/N: Four days left of summer. Today is my birthday, hah. The most exciting thing I have planned is a trip from my house to Toronto. Fun. Hah. Ohwell. Birthday update:

--&

Calleigh opened her eyes, and noted Eric's arms wrapped around her tightly. When had she fallen asleep? It must have been after their little game, but she didn't remember closing her eyes. Glancing at the clock, she saw it was already one in the afternoon. So much for Breakfast. She wasn't even sure if they'd make lunch now.

"Eric?" She asked, wiggling slightly, so she'd wake him up.

"Cal?" He replied groggily. "When did we fall asleep?"

"I can't remember." She giggled. "I suppose right after the game, because I can't remember anything after that."

"Makes sense then." He nodded, making no move to release her from his arms. She didn't mind at all.

"Yeah." She nodded, enjoying the warmth his body radiated. "But I think we missed breakfast."

"We can go to lunch." He shrugged.

"I think we missed that too." She giggled.

"Oh." He sighed. "Well, we could hit the vending machines again, then." He suggested.

"Sounds good to me. I planned to gain at least three pounds on this trip, anyhow." She joked.

"Right." He rolled his eyes. "I highly doubt you need to worry about you weight."

"Where would I be if I didn't?" She rolled her eyes. "Vending machines it is then." Nothing more was said after that for quite a few minutes, as they laid there quietly. The moment was interrupted though, by Calleigh's stomach growling.

"Maybe we should go see about those vending machines?" Eric suggested.

"That'd probably be a good idea." Calleigh agreed with a smile, which she tried not to let waiver when Eric pulled away.

"You stay here, I'll go." Eric told her, and her smile was quickly restored as Eric headed out of the suite to go find the vending machines.

Eric shut the door quietly behind him. He had to keep himself from jumping around in celebration. He had never expected the trip to be this successful! He thought maybe, maybe by the end of the trip he could get a kiss… but this, was more than he had ever expected and he couldn't be happier if he tried. He made his way down the hallways until he reached the vending machines he was looking for. As he selected several candy bars and other assorted things that would keep them tied over until dinner he groaned, moving around to the other side of the vending machine to stay out of sight. It was her. He knew that if anything was going to ruin this trip for him, it was the brunette vixen who seemed to loathe Calleigh and like him a little too much. She made her way down the hallway right toward him.

"Eric!" She smiled brightly, too brightly, and touched him on the arm in a flirtatious manner that made him want to throw up.

"Hi Mindy." He said in his most bored tone. He didn't like being rude, or cold to the girl who obviously just had a crush… but if she was going to ruin things with Calleigh, he would do whatever it took.

"What're you doing down here… alone?" She looked around for the blonde that always seemed to be in her way.

"Getting food." Eric answered nonchalantly.

"Oh." Mindy smiled again. "Slept in?"

"Well you know, _we _were tired." Eric shrugged, accenting the word we so Mindy would know that him and Calleigh were together. Mindy's face fell for a second at the reminder, before she plastered another huge, and extremely fake, smile on her face.

"Well you know, since I work here, I can pretty much get food any time of the day…" Mindy trailed off, waiting for him to accept the offer.

"Actually, it's okay. Calleigh's waiting for me back in our room… I don't want to keep her waiting." The look in Mindy's eye might have scared him if she wasn't such a petite woman, or didn't work in the line of work that he did.

"Well, I'm sure she wouldn't mind waiting a little longer." Mindy bit her lip, hoping he'd say yes.

"Besides the fact that I know she hasn't eaten anything since supper yesterday, I wouldn't miss spending any time with her on this trip, because I _love _her." Eric explained smiling widely. It felt amazing to be telling someone that, especially since he knew if he was here with any other girl that wasn't Calleigh, he would have gone with Mindy. That was his nature. This just proved to him that things with Calleigh were different. Mindy, wasn't sure what to say. She mumbled something incoherent and stalked off in an angry, jealous rage. Eric collected the things that he had bought in the vending machine and carried them back down the hallway to the room. Letting himself in, he dumped the pile of snacks on the bed, and Calleigh sat up eagerly, giving him a kiss on the cheek as he sat down.

"I am starving." She proclaimed as she began to unwrap a chocolate bar.

"Hopefully this doesn't make us sick." Eric laughed as he grabbed a chocolate bar as well.

"We'll enjoy it anyways." Calleigh shrugged with a smile.

"Guess who I ran into while I was getting the food?" Eric smirked.

"Hmm…" Calleigh pretended to think. "Mindy?" She guessed.

"You got it." Eric shook his head. "The girl is incorrigible. She was trying to convince me to go down and eat with her, since she can get food pretty much any time, but I told her that I wouldn't keep you waiting. Because I love you." Each time he said it sounded more amazing.

"I love you too." She murmured as she lay back, leaning against his chest, as he leaned against the headboard of the bed. And in that moment, neither of them could have been more content.

--&

A/N: Hah now I've been in school for like, two weeks. And it is so boring it is not even funny, but I shall get through it haha. I'm just looking forward to winter break. Now that things with school are more regulated and I'm back on a schedule, I should be updating moree.


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24:

A/N: Finally, right? Hah. I'm slow. So! Christmas in OCTOBER! Wow, I am cool. Hah. Well, I suppose this will probably end around NEXT Christmas. I am too slow, too too slow. But anyways, moving right along:

--&

After moments and moments of completely content silence, Calleigh's mind began working again.

"Eric?" She asked, tracing patterns with her finger on his hand.

"Yeah?" He asked, distracted by the movements of her finger to the point where he wasn't sure if he was even registering what she was saying.

"You do realize it's Christmas Eve?" She smiled. Her smile could light up the room.

"I do now." He smiled as well. "Time becomes irrelevant when you're having fun." He shrugged.

"That's one I've never heard before." She laughed. And her laugh was so intoxicating, he noticed, once again.

"Yeah." He nodded absentmindedly again. "Well, I am original." She just laughed again, sending him further into oblivion. "Do you know how distracted you make me, just by smiling or laughing or touching my hand?"

"About the same way you make me feel." She nodded. "But that's just a guess."

"Guesses are about all my mind can make right now." He chuckled in response.

"You know, we're going to have to get up and get ready for dinner soon." She told him. "There's ballroom dancing tonight, so everything will be formal."

"We really don't have to go." He told her with a smirk. She turned around in his arms so she was facing him.

"Eric," She dragged out his name, making him laugh at her childlike behavior. "We have to go!"

"Why?" He protested.

"Because I want to." She pouted. He leaned in and kissed her gently on the mouth, effectively wiping the pout right off.

"You're cute when you pout." He told her.

"Cute enough to agree with?" She asked, pouting once more.

"Unfortunately for me." He sighed in mock defeat. Her pout broke into a grin.

"Wonderful. You do realize I have to go get ready now?" She made no move to leave their current position.

"Yeah." He breathed. In and out. It was not a hard concept in the least, yet when in this close proximity with her, the task became forced and difficult. With one last peck on the lips initiated by her, and elongated by him. She then proceeded to smirk, and roll off the bed. Grabbing her suitcase, she headed once more to the bathroom to change. "You know, you really don't have to go in there." He told her.

"I know." Calleigh nodded, pausing at the bathroom door. "But besides the point that it wouldn't be fair to me, I want to surprise you."

"Surprise me?" He repeated, as if he were confused.

"Yes." She nodded, moving into the bathroom and shutting the door. "So be prepared to be surprised." He lay on the bed lazily for a few more moments before looking at the clock and deciding he too should begin to prepare for dinner. Trudging over to his suitcase, he removed a pair of black dress pants and put them on. Reaching back into the suitcase, he rummaged around for a few moments before producing four shirts. One was pink, which he ruled out. Not appropriate for ballroom dancing, he decided. The three remaining he couldn't choose between. One was a blue colour, the other a red and the third a black. He decided to wait and see what she had on. It would be a shame, he decided, if she was dressed to 'surprise' and he clashed with what she was wearing.

Meters away in the bathroom, Calleigh was rifling through her suitcase in hopes to find the dress she was looking for unwrinkled. She pulled out a red dress with a smile on her face. It wasn't. In fact, by some miracle, you could hardly tell the dress had been crammed in a suitcase at all. It was a darker, vibrant red dress that fit her form perfectly. She slipped it on and adjusted the strapless top so it was comfortable and sitting right on her. The dress was form fitting to the waist where it fell into more of a layered skirt. The waist was high and a black belt that wrapped around her directly under the bust and was tied at the back. She reached behind her and zipped up the zipper like she had only once before when she had first purchased the dress in the store on a spur of the moment, completely spontaneous shopping trip. Hoping he would like the dress, she began working on her hair and makeup as quickly as possible. She loved the feeling of anxiousness in this context because she knew the outcome would be positive. Eric loved her. He loved her in pajamas, in sweats, he just simply loved her. She had nothing to worry about with him, but it felt good to impress him nonetheless. And she was sure he would be impressed. Brushing her hair out quickly, she pulled it into an updo that complimented the outfit. She never wore much makeup anymore, so she quickly applied the tiniest bit of blush, eyeliner, eye shadow and lipstick to match. After giving herself a quick once over, she took a deep breath, picked up her suitcase and exited the washroom.

Once again, Eric found himself taking a deep breath as he heard her move to exit the washroom. How many times had she come out of that bathroom looking absolutely, breathtakingly beautiful during the trip? Well, every time she went in really. But nonetheless, he could never wait to see her. And now that he knew she was his… it just made it all the more better. As she stepped out, he simply blinked.

"Calleigh, you look absolutely stunning." He told her with a smile.

"As do you." She giggled. "But as much as I appreciate the outfit… I'm sure there's some sort of rule against going around this place shirtless."

"Probably." He nodded. "I was just waiting to see which shirt I should wear."

"The black one," She suggested. "With the red tie." He slipped the outfit on with the black pants. They were now dressed, impressed, and ready to get to dinner.

"Come on," Eric tugged on her hand gently as he led her out of the room. "We've got to get to dinner. I have not eaten a real meal all day, and I am starving."

"Me too." She agreed. "Though you _did _just eat all that candy."

"We've had this argument before." He chuckled as they made their way down the hallway. Tonight was going to be one hell of a night.

--&

A/N: I love the way my endings are always so AWKWARD, and weird. That's just me hah being tired, but wanting to get some sort of update up, even if it was sort of really short. I apologize! Thank you a lot, to everyone who is still reading this despite the fact that it's been like, a year. Hah. R&R!!


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25:

A/N: It is SNOWING. SNOWING! Hah! This makes me so much happier to write this now! Yay! Snow! Hah. I am happy, and extremely cold. I need to go shopping now. But snow equals Christmas (even though it isn't even Halloween yet!) and this is a Christmas story so now I am much more in the mood! And thank you for the reviews they were appreciated!

--&

"Wow!" Calleigh exclaimed as they walked into the dining room. "Everything was so nice before, but this is just so…"

"Christmas-esque." Eric filled in with a smile, for it was beautifully elegant décor, and he loved seeing Calleigh excited.

"I love it!" Calleigh declared as they made their way to a table. Tonight, instead of sitting with Lena and Eli, who waved but were far too busy with their children since kids did tend to get extremely wound up, well more so than usual, on Christmas Eve, they made their way over to a table beside Hanna and Daryl who smiled as they approached.

"You two look fabulous!" Hanna exclaimed, standing up to give Calleigh a hug.

"Thanks!" Calleigh beamed. This was the first Christmas in a long time she could remember where she was this happy. It was the first time period in a while, actually. "You look great too!"

"Thanks." Hanna smiled. "You remember Daryl, right?"

"Of course." Eric nodded. "How's your weekend been going?" He asked as Calleigh and him sit down at the table, pulling out the menus to decide what to order.

"It's been wonderful." Hanna answered, the huge smile never leaving her face.

"Yeah." Daryl nodded, "The dance couldn't have worked out better for us."

"That's great!" Calleigh smiled, Eric nodding in agreement.

"What about you?" Hanna asked. "How's your weekend been going?" Calleigh glanced over at Eric before answering with a bright smile,

"Perfect. We're officially a couple." Eric smile matched hers in brightness now.

"Wow." Hanna laughed. "I'm happy for you guys… I still don't believe you weren't a couple before this weekend though."

"We would have been if we were better with communicating our feelings." Eric shrugged, the smile never leaving his face.

"Yeah. Good thing Daryl and I are good at doing that." Hanna smiled, giving Daryl a peck on the cheek.

"And good thing you had lots of alcohol in your system." Calleigh gave them an over exaggerated wink.

"Shut up." Hanna laughed playfully.

"All right girls," Eric smiled. He loved seeing this side of Calleigh. "Let's order."

"May I get you drinks to start?" The waiter asked. "Or perhaps an entrée?" The four ordered drinks and decided to save their hunger for the actual meal, and of course, dessert.

"So are you two ballroom dancing tonight?" Eric asked.

"We're going to try." Daryl answered. "I was forced to ballroom dance once by an ex-girlfriend… but for Hanna, I'll try again."

"So charming." Hanna rolled her eyes with a light smile. "And I haven't ballroom danced since,"

"Cotillion." Calleigh sighed. Hanna winced slightly, and Daryl just looked lost.

"Don't ask." Eric mouthed across to him, not wanting Calleigh to have to endure the pain she'd already endured once that weekend. Daryl just nodded slightly smiled uneasily writing it off as a girl thing.

"We'll have fun tonight." Hanna smiled brightly again. "Make new memories to forget the old ones."

"Right." Eric nodded eagerly. Anything to make Calleigh feel better.

"We can make ballroom dancing fun." Daryl nodded confidently.

"You so don't want to do this." Hanna laughed.

"But I'm trying. I have to get credit for that right?" He replied with a laugh of his own.

"I have to go to the bathroom." Calleigh declared, standing up.

"I'm coming with you." Hanna stood up quickly, grabbing her purse. The two girls headed off towards the bathrooms.

"Girls." Daryl shook his head. Eric just smiled in agreement.

"They're something." He laughed.

"Yeah. I can't believe how lucky I am to have met Hanna." Daryl sighed. "At first, I thought I'd really hit it off with Calleigh… but she was obviously in love with you."

"I can't believe my luck." Eric smiled in agreement. "It's kind of funny, if you think about it, how I was dancing with Hanna and you were dancing with Calleigh to begin with."

"Yeah. That's how things work, I guess." Daryl shrugged. "But it is funny."

"Yeah." Eric nodded. "So what kind of work do you do?"

"I'm an architect." Daryl answered. "You and Calleigh are cops, right?"

"Being an architect would be cool." Eric commented. "We're CSIs, so we're not really cops, but more scientist cops."

"That's really cool." Daryl replied. "Do you get to use guns?"

"That's what everyone asks." Eric laughed. "Yeah, well we carry. Sometimes we use them. Guns are Calleigh's specialty. I'm pretty sure the ballistics lab is her second home. She's probably there more than her apartment."

"That's hot." Daryl smirked. "Sorry."

"It is." Eric agreed with a chuckle. "So it's fine. What does Hanna do?"

"She's actually a fashion designer." Daryl answered with a faraway look. "Since her works so adaptive, and she's her own boss, she's actually coming down to stay with me for a few days at least after we leave here."

"Wow. So you two really hit it off then." Eric didn't realize how serious the newfound couple was.

"Yeah. It's amazing, really." Daryl continued, still with his dreamy expression. "You and Calleigh should come visit me sometime. Hopefully Hanna will like it there and stay for a long while."

"Where is there?" Eric wondered.

"Southern California." Daryl answered.

"Nice." Eric commented. "We're in Miami."

"Must be difficult to be CSIs there." Daryl noted.

"Yeah. We see some strange things." Eric shrugged. "But I love my job."

"Yeah. Me too." Daryl nodded.

"We're back." Calleigh smiled, sitting back down at the table, followed by Hanna.

"Did you have a good girl talk?" Eric asked.

"Yeah." Hanna nodded, "Did you have good guy talk?"

"Guy talk?" Daryl raised an eyebrow.

"Well you had to have talked about something!" Calleigh shrugged.

"Yeah." Eric nodded.

"Girls." Daryl shook his head, making Eric chuckle, and Calleigh and Hanna glance at each other with slightly puzzled expressions.

"Boys." Hanna shook her head. It was going to be an interesting night.

--&

A/N: I don't care for this chapter much. But I wanted to post something hah. But that's okay. Yup! Oh! Halloween IN NINE DAYS. I actually am fairly excited. Which is funny cause I don't even know what I'm doing. Okay. Please review!!


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter 26:

A/N: So it's Christmas Eve in the story. That means that tonight is their last night here. Hopefully I can get the ballroom dancing and then get them to sleep in this chapter. I kind of feel like I'm seven years old again, and playing with my Barbie dolls hah, when I say it that way. Anyways, haha. Here we go, thank you for the reviews! Halloween in three days. Oh, yes. It will be grand. Halloween stories! Hah I should write one.

--&

After dinner, which was as fabulous as always, they were off towards to a large room for ballroom dancing. Calleigh was slightly nervous. Everything with Eric had been going like a dream, more perfectly than she'd ever imagined it… but how long would it last? Would he forget this when they went back to Miami? Would she? Could they really make it work with work, and all the rules and restrictions IAB would find, or create, to make it as hard as possible for them? Questions always haunted her, no matter when or why. But she was determined not to let these thoughts worry her tonight. It was going to perfect. She was sure of it. Everything she did with Eric seemed perfect to her. He made her feel perfect, and she loved that. She loved how she felt around him. How everything else, everything bad, disappeared. Even the memories, the nightmares that no one could ever make go away. No amount of counseling, or intoxicating substances could make any of it less real. Nothing she tried could make it go away. But Eric could. And that reason, coupled with the fact that she loved him made her more afraid than anything else. Eric made her complete, and now that she was complete, she didn't want to be half and broken again. She couldn't do it. Especially not with him, not with completion so close to her. Things that were so close and untouchable were so much more painful than something untouchable that you can only dream about.

"Cal, are you okay?" Eric asked. She shook her head slightly and became aware again of her surroundings. It was a good thing that Eric had his arm placed around her waist pulling him close to her the whole walk from the dining room to the ball room because she had no idea when they'd come to get there.

"Yeah. I'm just distracted." Calleigh smiled.

"Are you sure you want to go in there? Because we don't have to you know. We can just go to the arcade, or swimming…" Eric suggested.

"I appreciate that. I really do." Calleigh smiled at him, "But I want to do this. I'm not scared."

"Okay." He nodded, lacing his fingers through hers. "Ready?"

"I'm not scared." Calleigh told him, but he squeezed her hand nonetheless as they followed a random couple into the room. Calleigh gasped as soon as she entered and smiled brightly. "It's so beautiful!!" The room was indeed beautiful. Three of the four large walls displayed huge floor to ceiling windows, which gave the effect that it was snowing inside. Along with that, it was decorated beautifully with Christmassy decorations, trees, angels, stars and everything under the sun creatively strewn around the room.

"It is." Eric nodded. "Speaking of which, have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?"

"Yes, you have." Calleigh blushed slightly. "At least five times."  
"Well, you do." He smiled, and Calleigh didn't think he could be any sweeter. "Would you like to dance?" He asked with a flourish.

"I would love to." She smiled, placing her hand in his as they began to ballroom dance.

"Wow. I forgot exactly how long it's been since I've done this." Eric laughed as they messed up a few of the steps.

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded absentmindedly. She didn't want to remember how long it had been for her. She simply wanted to work on forgetting those memories, and creating these ones.

"I think we're getting it now." Eric noted with a concentrated look on his face as they began to dance more naturally and gracefully.

"I think we are." Calleigh smiled as they continued to dance. "More so than Hanna and Daryl anyways," She giggled, looking across the room at their friends as they struggling to get the moves correct while keeping up with the music.

"Oh well, they seem to be enjoying themselves just as much as we are." Eric shrugged with a chuckle. "We just have better memories."

"Yeah," Calleigh sighed. Maybe this dance wasn't such a good idea, as the topic of memories seemed to come up every other sentence. "They're such a cute couple."

"So are we." Eric smiled cheekily at her, making her laugh. Just then the song changed and they took a minute to adjust to the new tempo before continuing their easy dance, and having a conversation while doing so. "Are you really going to want to do this for the next…" Eric looked at his watch. ""Three hours?"

"Definitely not." Calleigh answered. "You can only ballroom dance for so long at a time."

"Agreed." Eric nodded. "What else could we possibly do?"

"We could…" Calleigh smiled teasingly before continuing, "Go swimming? The pool's heated all year round, it'd be cold until we got into the water, but after that we'd be fine. And there are hot tubs!"

"How could I resist?" Eric laughed. "We'll stay here for another half hour then?"

"Sounds good to me." Calleigh nodded. They continued dancing for a half hour, though both of them found themselves glancing at the large clock on the fourth wall.

"Want to get out of here?" Eric whispered into Calleigh's ear.

"Yes." She answered quickly. They smiled and waved at Hanna and Daryl, who were still struggling, though not so much as before, to get their moves right and flowing smoothly.

"So we'll go get our bathing suits, and then we'll head out to the pool?" Eric checked.

"Sounds good to me." Calleigh nodded. This night was going to be perfect.

--&

A/N: Okayy. Finished this morning hah. Now I'm hungry and cold and I need to get ready to sing in church this morning! So please review!


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27:

A/N: So last night I had the **worst** Halloween ever. But that's okay. Whatever. I shall now update today. I hope everyone else had a wonderful Halloween though! Thank you for the reviews!!

--&

"You almost ready?" Eric asked from his relaxed position on the bed. They had made their way back to their hotel room and Eric, who had packed less clothing than Calleigh had, found his swimming trunks and was changed before Calleigh had even found hers in her suitcase.

"Almost." She pulled the swimsuit out victoriously and smiled. "Now I have to put it on, be right back." Eric just smiled and went back to relaxing on the bed. He was glad to be out of his fancy attire, and Calleigh seemed to have cheered up since they left the dance. He knew she was trying hard to forget the past, but he could see she wasn't quite ready to erase those memories. She had to deal with them, and in time, she would… but he was glad that she hadn't picked tonight. He would help her make new memories and get over the old ones whenever and wherever despite how much it hurt him to see her so upset. Especially since she didn't seem to want to talk to him about it. But that part of the night was over now, they were going swimming. Swimming was good.

"When was the last time you went swimming?" Eric wondered.

"I don't know." Calleigh thought, from where she was changing in the bathroom. "I was at the beach with Valera on my day off a few weeks ago and we went in the water… That's not really swimming, but however."

"You and Valera go to the beach?" Eric asked. "I didn't know you guys were friends."

"Yeah." Calleigh shrugged. "We aren't really good friends or anything, we just like to hangout from time to time. We enjoy each other's company." She was finished changing now, and came out of the bathroom. "Here, you'll need this," she told Eric, handing him a towel.

"Yeah." He nodded. "You know you look gorgeous right?"

"Thank you Eric." Calleigh laughed, blushing slightly.

"It's true." He smiled. Calleigh just blushed a bit more, and then grabbed a pair of jeans and pulled them on, along with one of Eric's t-shirts that was on the floor. Eric gave her a look.

"What? I can't just walk to the pool in my swim suit." Calleigh rolled her eyes at him.

"I really don't think anyone would have an objection." Eric smirked.

"Shut up. Let's go." Calleigh rolled her eyes again.

"Coming, coming." Eric got up off the bed, grabbing one of his t-shirts himself out of his suitcase, and throwing it on. They did need to cover up until they got to the pool. He couldn't get over how gorgeous Calleigh really did look. In fact, she looked even more gorgeous now, in his shirt, than she had scantily clad in only her bathing suit. They made their way throughout the hallways, coming to stop, waiting for the elevator to get to their floor. "Are you sure it's not going to be cold?" Eric asked tentatively as they got into the elevator.

"Eric, it's a heated pool. Heated as in it will be like, eight five degrees." Calleigh explained. "We just have to get in fast."

"Yeah. Cause it's freezing outside." He shivered, thinking about it.

"Awh, poor baby." Calleigh mock cooed at him. He stuck his tongue out at her, and she just laughed as the elevator doors opened and they stepped out, walked down a hallway and stopped at the door that led out to the pool. The pool area was nearly deserted and rather dark out. Everyone must have been ballroom dancing, or simply not daring enough to swim outside in winter.

"Ready?" Eric asked.

"Yup." Calleigh nodded. They took a breath of warm air before opening the door. Eric shivered and Calleigh let out a small whimper as they stepped outside and the cold air surrounded them. Eric pulled off his shirt quickly and dived into the pool, sighing in relief as the pleasantly warm water scared off the chills he'd had only seconds before. Calleigh took a little longer, as she had to pull of Eric's shirt and her jeans. Finally accomplishing her goal, she slid into the pool, sighing in relief as the water warmed her. Treading in the water, they relished in the warmth until it had completely taken over their bodies, and they forgot that they were outside, in bathing suits, in winter. It was then that Calleigh realized the beauty of the situation. The snow surrounding the pool area, though it was completely cleared off the deck directly surrounding it, you could still see it on the mountains above, and on the ground only feet away. The clear, black night above, sprinkled with stars, constellations and a full moon. The mountains in the distance… everything was perfect. "Eric, I want to thank you for taking me on this trip with you."

"I enjoyed it probably more than you did Cal." Eric told her with a smile. "It was no problem at all."

"You know, if you didn't invite me here… none of this would have probably happened. I would have continued thinking you had no feelings for me in any other way than a friend." Calleigh smiled, swimming over closer to where Eric was treading, and giving him a chaste kiss on the lips.

"Me too." Eric nodded, smiling broadly. "And I have to be honest, I may have had ulterior motives when I invited you here." He leaned in for another kiss before Calleigh had the chance to respond.

"Maybe I had ulterior motives for coming." Calleigh raised an eyebrow as she pulled away from the kiss. "I never thought of that before." Eric laughed. "But I'm flattered." Calleigh hit him lightly on the arm.

"You know, it may be warmer in here than not in here…" Calleigh started, "But I say we go to the hot tubs. I'm getting cold."

"Wonderful idea." Eric agreed, noticing he was getting cold himself, despite how much warmth their mingled bodies were radiating.

"One," Calleigh began. They poised themselves to hop out of the pool. "Two," She continued, and they both shivered as they positioned their hands on the side of the pool, the cold winter night air capturing them. "Three." They both hoisted themselves out of the pool and broke at least one safety rule as they ran, nearly full speed, across the deck and to where the closest hot tub was sitting. They hopped inside, Eric just a few seconds before Calleigh since he was a faster runner.

"Ugh, that almost burns." Eric complained, though it was true. The cold air had such an effect on their skin, when they immediately got into the one hundred and two degree hot tub it was not a pleasant feeling at first.

"Yeah." Calleigh nodded, wincing slightly. "I didn't think it was possible to freeze that fast."

"Well, now we know differently." Eric nodded.

"Eric," Calleigh begin tentatively. She didn't want to let her earlier worries plague this moment as well, but she couldn't help but let them get to her in just the slightest way. "I just have to know something."

"Sure." He nodded, a worried expression invading his features.

"You won't forget this will you? When we go back to Miami, back to work… will we still have something?" She asked, not having the heart to look him in the eye, afraid of what he'd reply.

"Calleigh," He gently put his finger underneath her chin, and tilted it up so she was looking into his eyes, their faces merely inches apart. "There's always been something between us. And I would never let you forget this. Even if you wanted to go back to Miami and forget this ever happened… there's no way I'd be able to let you. You're not going to get rid of me for a very long time, I hope you know." He told her, wrapping her up in his arms. She just sat there contently in his arms for a few moments, breathing deeply before replying.

"I really do love you, you know." She told him. "And I'm glad you don't want to forget about this."

"I will never want to forget about this." He reassured her, giving her a kiss on the crown of her head. "And I really love you too."

"I'm glad." Calleigh smiled brightly. Everything _was _perfect.

--&

A/N: I was going to end that a tiny bit differently, but that's how I'll begin the next chapter I guess. Please review, it would make my day!


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28:

A/N: Okay, so I'm trying my best to bring this story to a close. There is the rest of this night in the story, and then tomorrow they go home. So I'll probably finish right there, then if there is interest, I'll do a sequel. I'll have a vote hah. Tell me in a review, if you would like a sequel to this story, which would you prefer first: Actual Christmas with the Delko family, some sort of thing in Louisiana with Calleigh's family or some random stuff with Daryl and Hanna? Hah. Okay. Chapter 28: I had to bring her back.

--&

Calleigh turned around in Eric's arms so she was straddling him, planting a kiss straight on his lips. As things got more heated Eric realized where they were.

"Cal," He started.

"What?" She asked, pulling away and looking him in the eye.

"It's not that I'm not enjoying this, believe me, I am… it's just, we're outside, in a hot tub. People's suites over look this area. Someone could be watching us, or reporting us…"

"Should we move this inside?" She asked suggestively, and he eagerly nodded. Preparing themselves for the wrath of cold air, they enjoyed one last moment filled with warmth in the hot tub before getting out, gathering their clothes, grabbing their towels and heading for the changing area.

"At least it's a bit warmer in here." Calleigh shivered as she dried herself off in record time and started pulling on her clothes. Eric, who only had to dry his upper half, already had his shirt on, and was still shivering.

"A bit, but I'd prefer we were back upstairs." He shuddered. "It's way too cold for my liking here."

"Agreed." Calleigh nodded, "Okay let's go." They headed for the elevator and sighed in relief at the warmth it brought. Eric had his arm around Calleigh as they stood together in the hallway waiting for the elevator, soaking wet and impatient to get upstairs. It seemed as if the elevator was taking forever to get from the bottom floor up the lone level it took to reach where they were waiting. And waiting.

"Someone must be doing something very important down there." Eric groaned.

"And very slowly at that." Calleigh added, their voices strained with frustration. Then, finally, the elevator stopped on their floor. And the doors opened.

"Perfect." Calleigh smirked, stepping inside, Eric, slightly more reluctantly behind her.

"Well, look who it is." Mindy smirked.

"Mandy," Calleigh greeted her with a bright smile, deliberately getting the name wrong.

"It's Mindy." She corrected through gritted teeth. Eric looked like he wanted to disappear. He tightened his arm around Calleigh's waist, pulling her closer to him. Calleigh happily obliged and even temporarily forgot about the silent passenger in the elevator. Eric glanced over at Mindy, who had been uncharacteristically silent for the duration of the elevator ride thus far, and noticed she was about to open her mouth to say something when suddenly, the elevator stopped.

"Did someone hit the emergency stop button?" Mindy asked, obviously annoyed.

"I didn't." Calleigh answered. "And I know Eric couldn't have."

"Shit." Mindy swore under her breath. "Power outage."

"Power outage?" Calleigh asked, almost frantically. "What's wrong?"

"Cal," Eric told her, squeezing her hand, "This isn't Miami, every power outage doesn't mean something terrible's going to happen. It'll just be from the snow."

"I'd feel better if I had my gun." Calleigh pouted.

"I wouldn't." Mindy muttered, and Eric, though no one saw it, smiled. Calleigh too, stifled a giggle. Soon, an awkward silence filled the elevator. Calleigh had slid down so she was sitting, pulling Eric along with her only minutes after the power had gone out. Mindy had soon after joined them in the more comfortable sitting position on the floor.

"How long do the power outages usually last for?" Calleigh wondered.

"I'm not sure." Eric shrugged. Mindy didn't answer. "Mindy, do you know how long the power will be out for?"

"Sometimes they're fifteen minutes, sometimes they're all night." Mindy shrugged.

"Well I hope this is only a few minutes, 'cause I'm freezing." Calleigh announced.

"We should press the emergency button. Maybe they can get us out of here some how." Eric suggested.

"Good idea." Mindy agreed pressing the button. A loud ringing of a phone filled the elevator.

"Hello," A monotonous voice suddenly filled the space.

"We're stuck on the elevator." Mindy informed them.

"How many of you are there?" The voice asked.

"There are three of us." Eric replied this time.

"Alright. Well, as you've probably guessed, this area is experiencing a power outage. For some reason our generators did not kick in. Someone will be around to help you out shortly. Please wait patiently until they get there."

"Yeah, thanks." Mindy replied, hitting the button again and then sighing, sinking further towards the floor.

"Why did we have to get on this elevator?" Eric groaned under his breath.

"Oh, you're such a baby." Calleigh giggled, pressing a kiss to his ear, since she couldn't correctly see where she was aiming for.

"Vomit." Mindy groaned. "Could you two just like, keep your hands off of each other until we get out of here?"

"We can try our best." Calleigh giggled, giving Eric another kiss, this time on the lips.

"I'm not deaf you know." Mindy told Calleigh angrily.

"So I've heard." Calleigh said indifferently. "What a shame."

"That's probably the most sophisticated insult I've ever received from a bitch like you." Mindy shot back.

"Likewise." Calleigh smirked. "Actually that'd be a lie. You kind of suck at insulting." Eric, by this point, was going crazy with having Mindy in the elevator.

"Well you know what," Mindy started to return with another insult when Eric cut her off.

"Girls, this is completely unnecessary." He told them. "Mindy, just give it up."

"No." She argued. "Because she doesn't deserve you."

"You're right." Eric nodded. "She doesn't deserve me." He paused for a moment to relish in the intense silence that filled the elevator. "She deserves so much more than I could ever give her… but she chose me. And I'll be forever grateful for that. So as long as Calleigh wants me, you or no one has a chance. And you're giving me a headache so please just stop." Eric finished. Mindy sat there, not exactly sure of what to say. Calleigh gave Eric another kiss, this time hitting his cheek. The elevator lurched and the lights came back on just in time for Eric and Calleigh to see Mindy, not holding onto anything, smack her head against the side of the elevator. She got up, as the doors opened, and fled from the elevator in pain. Calleigh sort of giggled.

"I feel mean now." She sighed.

"Don't feel mean." Eric stood up, and offered her a hand. "Just think, we'll never have to see her again."

"Good riddance." Calleigh smiled, taking Eric's hand and letting him help her to her feet. Then, surprising her, Eric scooped her up into his arms, and carried her out of the elevator and down the hallway, only lit by emergency lighting.

"Tonight has been perfect." She told him, with a smile.

"I know." He smiled back at her, as they reached their door. He set her down and opened the door. As the stepped inside, already engaged in a heated kiss, they knew that nothing would make tonight anything but perfect.

--&

A/N: HAHAhA. Obviously my most corny chapter yet! Hahaa. Wow. I'm kind of ashamed for being so corny. Thank you for all the lovely reviews! Send me some more? I think there'll be maybe two chapters left, maybe one. But it's coming to an end. This is like, my first non one shot, non challenge story that I've ever finished. Be proud of me haha.


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29:

A/N: One of the last. I don't know if I'll end it in this chapter, or the next. One of them probably. Okay. Here we go. Thank you for the reviews!

--&

Opening his eyes, Eric waited for the headache to hit him. But it never came. Glancing down at the brush of blonde hair, the previous nights events came flooding back to him, and he smiled. Glancing over at the clock, he frowned. It was nine already.

"Cal," He whispered. She shifted in her sleep and mumbled something he couldn't comprehend. "Calleigh, we have to get up." He told her, louder than before. She stirred, and then opened her eyes.

"Ugh." She groaned. "What time is it?"

"Nine." Eric answered, "And we've got to be out of here by eleven. We have a plane to catch at one."

"I don't want to get up." She mumbled, closing her eyes again. Eric leaned over and pressed a kiss to her lips, which she responded to immediately.

"See?" He smirked, "You're not as tired as you think. And we've got to get ready to go."

"Fine." She sighed. "You know, it's funny, you telling me that we're going to be late."

"Yeah." He laughed, getting out of bed and quickly heading for the shower. "You coming?" If she was at all asleep before that comment, no one would have known it judging by the speed she was out of bed at.

Forty-five minutes later, they were dried off and dressed.

"At least I know how to get you out of bed." Eric winked. Calleigh just chuckled and continued to pack her things up.

"I don't want to leave." Calleigh pouted as she attempted to get her suitcase shut.

"Cal," Eric began, "I promise nothing will change when we go back."

"I know. It's just… what if Horatio, or worse, IAB don't let us work together anymore… or what if…"

"What if what?" Eric knew what she was going to say. At least he thought he did.

"What if one of dies." She finished quietly, sitting on her suitcase.

"It won't happen." Eric shook his head.

"Eric, we both saw it happen to one of our best friends. Tim was here one day, and gone the next… you can't say that." She argued.

"You're right. But… I'd rather have this now, and worry about getting shot when we get shot. Even if we stop this right here, right now, and decide to forget all about this trip… I'd still love you Calleigh. Nothing's going to change that. It would just hurt more if you died and I never got to tell you. If I never got to kiss you." Eric told her.

"I'm sorry Eric." She apologized. "I have no idea where these insecurities are coming from."

"It's okay Cal." He told her with a smile. "As long as we're good?"

"We're good." She nodded.

"Do you need some help with that?" She was still sitting on her suitcase, and struggling to get the zipper done up at the same time. Approaching, he reached around her and did up the zipper. "I told you you packed too much." He laughed.

"Oh, I did not." She smiled. "You didn't pack enough! Look how easily your suitcase did up."

"We were only here for like, three days." He informed her. "How many clothes did you need?"

"I wore almost everything in here!" She defended herself.

"Almost being the operative word." Eric teased. "But the thing is closed now… I'm just glad there was no where to shop here."

"Me too." Calleigh laughed. "Cause it would have taken more strength than both of us have to shut that suitcase."

"Are you insulting my strength?" Asked Eric, mock hurt. He flexed his muscles and Calleigh laughed again. Eric loved how easily he could make her laugh.

" No Eric. I love your muscles." She told him.

"I knew there was an ulterior motive." He shook his head, but she could see the smile on his face.

"Right. And what was your ulterior motive?" She joked.

"Hmm. Where to start." He teased.

"Cute, Eric." She rolled her eyes.

"I'd have to say it was either your gun collection or all your high, weapon like shoes."

"Weapon like shoes?" Calleigh raised an eyebrow.

"Fine. It was the gun collection." Eric sighed. "There. I said it." Calleigh just laughed and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you for helping me with my luggage." She whispered.

"No problem." He gave her a chaste kiss before finishing up with his luggage. Calleigh walked around the room, surveying it to make sure they hadn't left anything behind. "We're good?"

"We're good." She nodded. "What time is it?"

"Ten fifteen." He answered.

"Should we head out?" She proposed.

"Might as well." He shrugged, grabbing his bag, then hers.

"Eric… you don't have to," She started before he cut her off.

"It's fine Cal. Besides, I need to use my illustrious muscles. Keep them looking good." He joked.

"Well, if you put it that way," She shrugged with a smile. He carried their bags down throughout the hallways until they reached the front lobby. "Think she'll be working?" Calleigh asked with a smile.

"Knowing our luck." Eric shrugged. He didn't care about Mindy anymore. He never had, only when he thought she could jeopardize his chances with Calleigh, but when he looked at it overall, she'd really just helped bring them together. "Really, all she ever did was bring us closer."

"I guess you're right." Calleigh nodded with a smile. Walking up to the front desk, they were indifferent to the fact that it wasn't Mindy working at the desk.

"We're checking out." Eric told the woman.

"What's your name, sir?" She asked, not even bothering to look up.

"Delko." He told her. She looked up at that, and smirked, looking back down again.

"I hope you enjoyed your stay." She told him curtly, a bit of a smile playing on her lips.

"I did, thanks." Eric smiled.

"Have a safe trip home."

"Thanks." Calleigh put in this time. Walking away from the desk, she added to Eric, "Obviously Mindy has a big mouth."

"Obviously." Eric nodded, as they walked outside. Calleigh shivered.

"Now what am I going to do with this winter coat in Miami?" She asked with a laugh. "Or these snow pants. Or the gloves…" She trailed off.

"Well," Eric started, "We'll have to start taking these vacations more often."

"I'd like that." Calleigh smiled.

"Maybe next time, since you know, we won't have the whole feelings thing to worry about, we'll get some skiing in."

"Maybe." Calleigh nodded. "I did enjoy skiing. Except for when I fell and got all that snow and almost froze to death."

"Except that part." Eric nodded sympathetically, though there was a hint of mockery in his voice. By this time, they were at the car and Eric was shutting the trunk. "Ready to leave?"

"Ready to leave." Calleigh nodded. As they got in the car and drove away from the resort, she kept her eye on the mountains becoming smaller and smaller behind them. Because under those mountains and in that resort, their lives had changed forever.

--&

A/N: Okay. So I was going to have a whole getting on the plane, airport, home kind of ending… but I thought this was sort of nice. If this isn't satisfactory and everyone thinks I should add just one last, thirtieth, chapter onto this, then I shall. But it won't be overly long, and for now, this is complete. Until a sequel. But I won't start a sequel until I finish all my other Miami stories. Or it's Christmas. Though we all know which will come first, hello Christmas! But, I just wanted to say that you guys rock a lot, for reviewing and reading right until the end of this excruciatingly long story! I love you!


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